Jersey Boy finds love
by saphire dancer
Summary: He saved her life in more ways than one
1. Chapter 1

_****Just a quick note! I had to redo this whole thing because I am still trying to get the hang of this website! Sorry! Thanks for those of you that already reviewed it! I appreciate it! I ahd added to it! Please review and leave comments! Thanks! Oh~And I don't own any of this! I just like to write! ****_

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An old, beat up blue sedan pulled up in front of the Honolulu police department. The woman inside took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She glanced in the rear view mirrow and thought "do I really want to do this?". She then straightened her shoulders and got out of the car. She walked in thru the front doors and up to front desk clerk. "I'd like to see Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, please." The desk clerk pointed to a glass door behind him and said "thru that door and to the right". "Thank you". The woman walked thru the door and to the right and then she stopped short when she saw him. It had been almost 2 years since the last time she had seen him. He had been like a brother to her when her parents died. She knew if she could trust anyone, she could trust her cousin. She pushed open the door and quietly walked into his office. Steve was engrossed in a police file and didn't even look up. The woman quietly cleared her throat, and Steve's head snapped up. His eyes lit up when he saw her. "Ricki" he said as he stood up out of his chair and walked around the desk. "Hi Steve" the woman said quietly. Steve stopped short when he got close to her. "What happened to you?" he said with concern. Ricki had a fresh black eye, the other one healing, and several bruises and marks on her hands, arms and face. Ricki's eyes filled with tears and all she could choke out was "Tom".

Tom Abbott had been a fellow SEAL of Steves. Ricki and Steve sat down and she told him about everything that had happened. "It all started after Tom came back from Afghanistan the last time your unit was there." Steve thought "that was 3 years ago...". Ricki continued, "Tom came back a completely different person. He would blow up at the smallest thing. At first he would just push or shove me. Then he didn't get the transfer he wanted and he came home and started hitting me. He beat me bad enough I had to go to the hospital. It has just gotten worse and I have finally had enough." "Why didn't you tell me?" Steve asked. "I was scared."

After they talked for a while longer, Steve called Kono in. "This is my cousin, Ricki. Can you take her and take pictures of all of her injuries, old and new. I will be back in a little bit."

"Where are you going, Steve?" Ricki asked concern written all over her face. "I am going to get the son of a bitch that hurt you and teach him a lesson." Kono and Ricki just watched in shock as he left. He stopped and got Det. Danny Williams and asked him to go with him. He said he would explain on the way.

After Kono took pictures and documented every injury Ricki had, they sat in Steves office and talked for a while. When Steve and Danny came back, Steve's knuckles were bloody and bruised, and Danny's lip was bleeding, and he had a cut above his eye. "Are you guys ok?" Ricki asked. "We're fine, just a little bruised. Tom on the other hand is not. That is one ass hole that won't be getting out of jail anytime soon!" The men just looked at each other. "Oh, Danny, this is Ricki, my cousin. Ricki, Det. Danny Williams." "Hi" they both said at the same time. They both smiled and chuckled a little. Little did any of them know what they next several months would bring...

3 months later

As Ricki was getting ready for Tom's trial she thought about what she would say on the stand. She knew she had to be truthful, but she didn't want to come off as weak. Steve interrupted her thoughts by asking her if she was ready to go. She had been staying with him because he was the only family she had on the island. She was ready...she had been ready for a long time...

Tom's trial hit a snag when his lawyer asked for an extension. The judge granted them a 3 month extension. Tom's lawyer then bailed him out of jail. Ricki was scared, but Steve, Danny, Kono, and Chin all assured her that they would protect her.

And they did...until about 2 months later...

One night Ricki was cooking dinner at Steve's. Danny had been assigned to stay with her for that night. Ricki and Danny had really been hitting it off and Ricki was starting to think about dating again. Even though she had been with Tom, she hadn't wanted to be with him since the first time he hit her. She had stayed because she was scared and because Tom told her he would kill her if she ever left. Ricki was standing at the stove stirring the chili she was cooking when a voice behind her made her blood run cold. "Hello Ricki" Tom said. Ricki turned around white as a sheet. "What are you doing here?" she managed to ask. "Getting what belongs to me." Tom grabbed Ricki by the back of her hair, put a knife to her throat and shoved her toward the front door. She fought to get away from him and he back handed her so hard she fell to the ground. He jerked her up by the arm, squeezing it hard enough to bruise. As they get to the front door, Danny, with gun drawn, steps in front of Tom and says "get your hands off of her". Tom lunges at Danny with the knife. Danny fires 2 shots almost point blank. Tom drops to the floor, dead. Ricki just stands there in shock. Danny comes and puts his arms around her and leads her into her bedroom and calls Steve, and tells him what happened. Ricki sits on the edge of the bed, still in shock. Danny kneels in front of her and asks her if she is ok. She slowly nods her head and then bursts into tears. Danny, a little confused, puts his arms around her and just holds her while she cries.

Once everyone cleared out of the house, Steve tells her that they have to stay in a hotel for the night because the clean up crew wouldn't be there until in the morning. Kono helped Ricki gather up her things and throw them in a bag. When they get to the hotel, Danny walks Ricki to her room. "Hey, um, I'm sorry Ricki." "Sorry? For what?" Ricki asked, shocked. "Danny, you saved my life, in more ways than one!" Danny looked at her confused. Ricki explained "You not only saved my life by shooting Tom tonight, but when I first came into the office, you went with Steve and fought with a man you didn't know, for a woman you didn't know. You protected me from this monster. Please don't be sorry. I owe you my life." Danny gently took Ricki's hand. "Are you going to be ok? Do you need anything?" he asked tenderly. "Will you stay with me and just talk for a while?" Ricki asked. "I really don't want to be alone yet.". "Sure" Danny smiled. They talked for most of the night. Ricki told him about everything she had gone thru with Tom. Danny told her all about Grace and even about his ex-wife, Rachel. When Ricki finally fell asleep, Danny sat in the chair across from the bed and just watched her. She was the most beautiful and incredible woman he had ever met. He just wasn't sure when he would be able to tell her that.

When Ricki woke up the next morning it took her a minute to remember why she was so sore. As everything became real once more, tears sprang into her blue eyes. But these were not tears of sadness, but rather tears of joy. She was free! Finally, free!

Her cell phone ringing beside the bed brought her out of her joyous dream-like state.

"Hello?"

"Hi! How are you feeling?" Danny asked. He had only left about an hour ago, just to get a quick shower, and change clothes.

"I feel ok...no, actually I feel good. I am pretty sore and banged up, but I've felt worse." Ricki answered.

"Ok, well, me and the rest of the team are down stairs in the lobby if you want to come down. We thought we all might just kind of hang out together today."

"I would love that!" Ricki exclaimed. "I will be down in 20 minutes. I just need to shower."

Danny closed his eyes, swallowed hard, and tried not to think of her taking a shower. "Ok" he managed, "see ya in a few. Bye"

"Bye". They both hung up their phones. Ricki jumped in the shower and 25 minutes later she was walking out of the elevator feeling better than she had in a very long time.

She greeted everyone as she walked into the lobby of the hotel, "Hey guys!"

Danny looked up and again had to swallow hard...she looked beautiful! She was wearing jeans with a 'Go Navy' t-shirt ("she must have got that from Steve" Danny thought.). Her long reddish-brown hair hung down her back in waves with curls at the ends. He had never seen her with her hair down, it was almost always in a pony tail.

"Hey, I was wondering where that t-shirt went" Steve said interrupting Danny's admiration of Ricki.

"Sorry." Ricki laughed unappologetic.

"So what are we going to do today?" Kono asked.

"How about a cook out at my place?" Chin offered. "Right on the beach, can't beat it."

Everyone, even Danny who really doesn't like the beach, but was willing to do anything to be close to Ricki, agreed. Then the men went to get the charcoal for the grill and firewood for a big fire on the beach later that night. Ricki and Kono went to the store for the groceries.

After they had grilled what seemed like a feast including chicken, corn on the cob, and of course, pineapple, and had eaten all they could handle, they played a game of dominoes. Then Danny suggested 5 card draw. They decided to play the poker game with cereal since none of them really had any money on them. Even though they had eaten just a short time ago, they all munched on the cereal as they played. Danny ended up winning. He was a good poker player. He and his daughter, Grace, liked to play for fun when she was with him for the weekend. Then they all just talked for a while. Ricki had gotten very quiet durring this time, and so it was no surprise when she asked if it would be alright if she took a walk down the beach. Everyone said that was fine and Ricki made her way down Chin's hand crafted stone steps to the beach. She walked a little ways and then decided to sit down and watch the sunset. She hadn't been gone long when Steve started to get antsy because he couldn't see her. He started to get up and go look for her, but Danny stopped him, "I'll go". Steve let him and knew why Danny had wanted to go. He had been flirting with her all day, and she had been flirting right back. Steve wanted to see his cousin happy, and he wanted to see Danny happy too.

"Mind if I join you?" Danny asked softly as he sat down beside Ricki.

Ricki just smiled.

"You ok?" Danny asked gently.

"Yes...yes, I am. I am free of Tom and all the baggage that went with him. I am free to make my own choices again. I can be me! And I have you to thank for that."

"Well, I..." Danny was cut off by Ricki placing her hand on his knee.

Danny looked at Ricki and she looked at him.

"You are so beautiful" Danny whispered.

"Thank you" Ricki whispered back.

Danny slowly leaned forward and gently kissed Ricki. It was a sweet and gentle kiss. As the kiss broke Ricki smiled up at Danny's handsome face. He put his arm around her and she put her head on his shoulder. They watched the sun set, both lost in their own thoughts for the moment.

The next several months went by quickly. Danny and Ricki went out every chance they got. Ricki felt safe with Danny, she didn't feel pressured to sleep with him after every date. Danny was kind and gentle, and he made her laugh! He never asked her to stay the night...he had told her that when she was ready for that to let him know. Otherwise he wasn't going to ask her. Ricki got to know Grace and even spent a few weekends with her and Danny doing "extra special things" as Grace called them.

The night of their 7th monthiversary Danny called and told Ricki to wear her best dress...he was going to take her somewhere special and it was a surprise. Ricki was dressed to the nines when Danny picked her up. She had on a black dress with spagetti straps. It had an empire waist with red beading along the waistline. It fell to just above her knee. It hugged all of her curves perfectly. She wore red flats (because she doesn't like heels). Her hair hung loose and curly down her back. Danny's mouth dropped open in awe.

"Wow" was all he could muster.

"Thanks" Ricki smiled shyly at him.

"Lets get going" Danny said opening the car door for Ricki. Ricki slid in the car. She told herself to calm down, it was just Danny...but for some reason her heart would not stop pounding.

Danny took Ricki to a resturaunt called Orchids in the Halekulani Hotel in Waikiki. They talked and laughed throughout the amazing dinner. They decide to skip desert and instead go back to Danny's place and watch a movie. When they get to Danny's apratment, Ricki asks Danny if he has something she can change into. Danny digs out a tshirt and a pair of pj pants with SpongeBob SquarePants on them. Ricki laughs when she sees them.

"Grace bought them for me" Danny explains.

Ricki goes into the bathroom and changes clothes and when she comes out Danny has turned the lights out and has candles lit all over the living room.

"It's beautiful" Ricki gasps.

"Not as beautiful as you" Danny tells her.

Danny sat down on the couch.

"Come here" he says patting the seat beside him.

Ricki sits down beside him.

Danny immediately captures her in a long, passionate kiss...one that leaves them both breathless.

"Danny..." Ricki begins, "I want to...I mean, if you want to...um, well, if you don't mind..."

"Ricki, what is it?"

"I would like to stay the night. I am ready for us to take that next step" Ricki finally admitted.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Just promise me one thing."

"What is it?"

"Promise me you won't ever hit me."

"I promise."

Danny stands up and takes both of her hands. He pulls her to a standing position. He wraps his strong, muscular arms around her and again kisses her until she is breatless. He then leads her to the bedroom.

He stands in front of her and looks into her blue eyes and asks her again, "Are you sure?".

She answers him by grabbing the front of his shirt and kissing him passionately, almost urgently. She then starts to unbutton his shirt, never once taking her eyes off of his. As she pulls his shirt off, Danny, being as gentle as possible, slips the tshirt she has on off. Ricki's breath is starting to get heavy, as is Danny's. Danny runs his fingers gently thru her hair. Ricki unbuckles his belt and gently takes it off. Meanwhile Danny is running his hands up and down her back. Ricki starts to kiss his neck, leaving little wet kisses all the way down to his chest. Danny then starts to untie the drawstring on the pj pants she was wearing. As they fall to the floor, Ricki slowly kisses her way all the way down to Danny's amazing six pack abs. She unfastens his pants and pushes them to the floor. As they both stand there in nothing but their underwear, they both realize what this step means for them. Danny gently picks Ricki up and carries her to his bed. He lays her down and then lays down beside her.

"We don't have to if you don't want to" Danny tells her in a hushed voice.

Ricki looks at him with fire in her eyes.

"Danny, I want to...I want to make love to you."

Thats all Danny needed to hear. He gently took off her bra and just stared for a moment at her full breasts. He then took one nipple into his mouth and teased it with his tongue. He moved his hand so that he could feel the fullness of her breasts in his hand.

Ricki gasped at what just his touch did to her.

He then kissed his way down to her panty line. He slowly took off her panties. As she lay there in all her naked glory, Danny couldn't help but feel lucky enough to have a woman like Ricki. Strong, beautiful, caring, and sexy as hell!

Ricki could feel Dannys long, hard erection against her leg. She reached down and tried to take his boxers off but couldn't quite reach them. Danny decided to help her. Then there they were, skin to skin. Danny kissed Ricki with all the passion he felt inside. He positioned himself over her and looked at Ricki once more with questioning eyes. She nodded her head and again captured his lips in a passionate kiss. Her tongue running over his lips, diving deeper into his mouth. Danny was matching her tongues movements. Danny slowly guided his long, hard erection into her warm, wet and waiting womanhood. Ricki sucked in her breath and the amount of pleasure she felt. He gently started to thrust slowly at first, Ricki responding to his every move.

"Ricki...god you feel amazing" Danny whispered.

"Danny...oh, Danny" Ricki moaned.

Neither one had been with anyone in a long time. Danny's thrusts were getting faster, but were still just as gentle. Ricki met every one of them with all the passion she felt inside.

Ricki knew Danny was getting close, and so was she.

"Sweetheart...I'm almost there" Danny grunted.

"Let go baby, lets let go together". Ricki breathed.

"Ricki...oh Ricki...oh beautiful...oh god..."

"Danny, Danny, DANNY!"

They both exploded with passion.

They both gasped, trying to catch their breaths.

"Danny, will you hold me" Ricki asked, still breathless.

Danny rolled over and pulled her close. She layed her head on his chest and listened to his heart slowly return to a normal beat. She thought maybe he had gone to sleep, but then he ran his fingers up her arm, and brushed her hair back from her forehead. He gently kissed the top of her head.

"Ricki, I love you" Danny confessed quietly.

Ricki had no idea what to do...so she pretended to be asleep. She layed awake long after Danny had fallen asleep thinking about what she felt. Did she love him? She thought she did, but how could she be sure?

Ricki had finally fallen asleep when Dannys phone woke them both up.

"Yeah?" Dannys voice filled with sleep.

Ricki couldn't hear what was being said on the other end of the phone, but she could tell by the way Danny tensed up that something was wrong.

"I'll be there in 10." he informed the other person.

Danny turned around and looked at Ricki. He got up and started getting dressed.

"I gotta go. We've got a missing girl and the govenor wants 5-0 to help find her."

"Ok. Call me later?"

Danny leaned over and kissed Ricki passionately.

"Of course. Bye babe."

Ricki took her time getting dressed and going home. She had to call a cab because she didn't have her car and Danny had taken his to work. She didn't mind though. She needed to think.

Ricki climed out of the bathtub almost an hour after she got in. She felt refreshed and she knew what she was going to say to Danny as soon as she saw him. She loved him, and she had to tell him. Her phone ringing drew her out of the bathroom and her own head.

"Hello?"

"Ricki...it's Kono. Danny's been shot! You need to come to the hospital immediately."

Ricki hung up the phone and ran out the front door.

By the time Ricki got to the hospital, Danny had already been taken into surgery. Since Ricki worked as a nurse at the hospital, she went straight to talk to the ER nurse. Ricki knew the doctor doing the surgery and knew Danny was in good hands. She walked over to where Steve, Kono, and Chin were sitting and told them what the ER nurse had told her.

"He is in surgery and he's lost alot of blood." The nurse in her seemed to take over reguardless of the fact that she loved the man she was talking about.

"How many times was he shot?" she asked Steve, noticing the blood on his hands and clothes.

"Twice" Steve answered.

"Were you hurt?" Ricki asked with concern.

"No...the bloods Danny's. I tried to stop the bleeding until the ambulance got there." Steve, being the brave SEAL he was, kept his emotions hidden from his face.

"Excuse me" he said as he stood up and nearly ran out of the waiting room.

Chin started to follow him but Ricki stopped him.

"Let him go. He needs time to process this. Thats just how Steve is." she told him.

Ricki then noticed the look on Kono's face. She looked like she had seen a ghost.

"Kono, are you ok?"

"I'm sorry" she stammered. "It should have been me, not Danny."

"What are you talking about?" Ricki asked her.

"I was supposed to go first, but my holster got caught on the door handle, so Danny went in front of me." Kono explained.

"Kono, don't blame yourself. Danny wouldn't want that. He was doing his job, same as you." Ricki told her. Ricki went over and gave Kono an hug.

"He'll be fine, you'll see." Ricki reassured Kono while also reassuring herself.

Danny came out of surgery a few hours later, and was taken to a private room in the ICU. He was unconscious, and was on oxygen. The doctor told them all that the next 24 hours would be crucial to Danny's survival. He had been shot twice, once in the right shoulder, and once on the left side of his chest. The bullets missed any major arteries, but he had lost alot of blood and there was quite a bit of damage done to several muscles and ligaments in his shoulder. The doctor allowed them to all go in and see him, but only for a few minutes. Steve, Kono, and Chin all said a few words of encouragement to Danny, and walked out in the hall. Ricki went in and froze at the doorway. Danny's normally tanned face was white as a sheet. There were monitors all over his strong chest along with the bandages from the gunshot wounds. Steve opened the door and asked her if she was ok. That seemed to snap her out of the trance she was in. She nodded and slowly walked over to Danny's bed. She stroked his blond hair, and held his hand. Ricki suddenly burst into tears and fell to her knees beside the bed. Steve ran into the room and pulled her up and held her while she cried. As her tears finally started to subside she looked up at Steve, and asked "He is going to be ok, isn't he?"

Steve held her chin and made her look into his eyes.

"Danny's a fighter. He is going to fight to live. He has too much to live for, Grace, you, his job. He will be ok." Steve told her sternly.

"Can I stay with him for a little while?" she asked.

"Sure. I'll tell the doctor to let you stay and I'll get you a chair." Steve answered.

Ricki got settled in Danny's room. Kono, and Chin told her they would go and get a few things from Danny's apartment. She asked them to be sure and get him a tshirt and a pair of shorts because she knew Danny would not want to wear the hospital gown. They aslo said they would stop by and get a few things from Steve's place for her too. She thanked them and settled down into the chair. Steve poked his head in the room and told her he was going to go home and shower and change and then he'd be back. He also said he would call Rachel, and Danny's parents and let them know what had happened.

When everyone had gone and Ricki was alone with an unconscious Danny, she finally spoke to him.

"You have to get better Danny, you have to! I don't know what I would do without you. I love you Jersey boy. You have to wake up so I can tell you."

Ricki then laid her head down on his bed and cried. She didn't intend to fall asleep, but that is exactly how Rachel found her.

Rachel quietly walked over to Danny's bed and stared at her ex-husband. She had never seen him look so vulnerable. She leaned down close to Dannys ear. "You have to wake up Daniel. Grace needs you. Ricki needs you. That woman loves you Daniel, I know she does! You had better wake up soon, you hear me?." Rachel then turned and walked out of the room. She stopped when she got into the hallway, and leaned against the wall. The tears that she had been holding back started to flow down her cheeks. What was she going to tell Grace?

Ricki had been sitting at Danny's side for what seemed like years when in fact it was only 2 days. She laid her head on the side of the bed, and stroked his soft blond hair. She held his hand and talked to him. She had just started to drift off when she felt a hand on the top of her head, and a raspy "Hey beautiful".

She spun her head around and smiled at Danny's baby blue eyes wide open looking at her. "Hey Jersey boy" she beamed. "How ya feeling?"

"Like I've been to hell and back" Danny chuckled but then wincing in pain.

"I'll go get the nurse. They wanted to know as soon as you woke up." Ricki told him.

The nurse came in and check Danny's vitals and said all looked strong and that the doctor would be in to check on him in about an hour. Once the nurse left Ricki looked at Danny and just smiled. "What is that smile for?" he asked.

"I love you Danny" Ricki said quietly. Danny looked into Ricki's blue eyes and said "do you mean it?"

"Yes. I was going to tell you when you got home from work, but then you got shot, and I didn't have a chance to, and all I could think about was you dying and how I hadn't told you that I loved you and that I might not ever get a chance to tell you, and I kept thinking maybe he didn't mean it, maybe he was just caught up in the moment and then if that was true how wierd it would be if I told you and you didn't feel the same..." Ricki rambled. Danny just grinned at her and took her hand. "Ricki, I meant it when I said it the other night. It wasn't because we had just made love. I wasn't 'caught up in the moment'. I meant it when I said it. I don't just throw those words around." He cupped her cheek in his hand. "I love you Ricki. I meant it then, and I mean it now." He tried to lean forward to kiss Ricki, but groaned in pain. "Come here" he whispered. "I don't want to hurt you" Ricki argued. "You won't" he assured her. Ricki sat down on the side of the bed. She leaned forward. She saw a grimace cross Danny's face and she immediately sat back up. "No, its ok. I want,no, I NEED to kiss you" Danny told her. She could hear the urgency in his voice. She leaned forward again, a little farther this time and Danny rose as much as he could to meet her lips. Ricki put her hand on the back of Danny's headand entwined her fingers in his hair as their tongues swirled around each others mouths. When they broke apart they were both panting. The doctor chose that moment to walk into the room, closely followed by Steve, Kono, and Chin. Ricki silently stood up and took a few steps away from the bed in order to gather her thoughts and feelings and put them in place. Danny on the other hand just sat back with one of those 'shit-eating grins' on his face, his chest still heaving from the kiss. The older doctor had enough experience in his field not to say anything in front of the other people in the room, plus he knew Ricki both personally and professionally. He didn't want to embarass her or the patient. He would talk to the couple privately later. The doctor intorduced himself to Danny. "I am Dr. Jensen. The last time we spoke you were unconscious." he grinned.

"So, when can I go home doc?" Danny asked a little breathlessly.

"Not for a few more days yet, son. You lost alot of blood and still have quite a bit of healing left to do. I'll come back and talk to you about everything that you can and can't do in a little while." Dr. Jensen turned and sopke to Ricki, "How are you doing Nurse McGarrett?"

"Fine, thank you Dr. Jensen."

He then turned and told the other visitors not to stay for too long.

When Dr. Jensen had left, Steve walked over to Danny's bed. "Its good to see you awake, Danno."

Danny shot Steve a 'go to hell' look.

"It is good to see you looking better" Kono spoke up. She then walked over and took hold of Danny's hand. "You had us worried there, brah." Kono said with tears in her eyes. All of these men were like brothers to her. She couldn't imagine loosing any of them.

Chin cleared his throat and asked "Is there anything you need or want Danny? Anything we can get you?".

Danny thoguht for a moment, "Maybe some shorts. These hospital gowns suck at covering up your ass."

They all laughed at Danny's bluntnes. Danny was sounding like his old self.

Steve walked around the bed and pulled out a bag from the closet. "Ricki already had us bring you some" he said as he laid the bag on the foot of the bed. Danny looked over at Ricki and grinned.

"Well, she would know better than anyone, she probably sees more asses than she'd like to" Danny joked referring to Ricki being a nurse. They all laughed again.

"Well, we'd better go. We'll come back tomorrow and see how things are going" Steve told Danny. "Thanks for coming guys" Danny said sinerely. "No problem, brah" Chin said as he opened the door to leave. As they walked out, Ricki and Danny both noticed that Steve took Konos hand as they started to walk down the hall. They both looked at each other and smiled. "Now, where were we?" Danny asked with a mischievous look on his face.

Ricki laughed. "Are you serious?"

"Come here" Danny growled.

Danny grimacing in pain scooted over as far as he could to give Ricki some room to lie down next to him. She happily complied. "Are you sure I am not hurting you" she asked.

Danny smiled at her and said "It hurts a little, but it is worth it to get to hold the woman I love and loves me back". Danny bent his head down and kisssed Ricki gently. "I love you Ricki." Danny whispered.

"And I love you Danny" Ricki whisperd back. They both smiled and settled down to watch some TV. They both fell fast asleep. Dr. Jensen came back to check on Danny and found the couple sound asleep. He decided to let them sleep and would come back in the morning.

Danny woke up the next morning to the smell of something delicious. He opened his eyes and saw one of the most beautiful things in the world. A box of cocoa puffs from Liliha bakery. He tried to sctretch, but pain shot thru his arm and chest. He stifled a groan, not wanting to worry anyone. Ricki stepped out of the bathroom and saw that Danny was awake. All Danny could do was stare at her for a moment. She had just showered and changed clothes. She was wearing his favorite New Jersey Nets tshirt and a pair of denim shorts. Her hair was hanging down her back and was still damp from her shower. "O my god...she is so hot" was all he could think. He couldn't stop himself from becoming hard just watching her walk towards him. "Hey there sleepy head" she said smiling at him. "How'd you sleep?" she asked sitting gently down on the bed.

Danny swallowed hard and tried without success to control his growing erection. "Great" he said. Ricki noticed that Danny looked a little uncomfortable. "Are you ok? Do I need to get the nurse?" she asked strating to stand up.

Danny grabbed her hand and pulled her back down to the bed. "No, I'm fine, just a little turned on" he admitted. Ricki blushed slightly, "Oh" was all she said. She then stood up and walked over to the door and closed it all the way. She pulled the curtain all the way around the bed to close it off from the rest of the room. "Well, I guess we'll just have to take care of that then won't we?" she purred. Dannys eyes were wide as saucers. Rachel had never been this spontaneous. Everything always had to be planned with her. He liked this. Being able to say how he was feeling and then do something about it.

"Can we?" Danny asked.

"Well..." Ricki drawled, "We can't actually make love, but there is something else I can do for you." she said biting her bottom lip in a way that made Danny quiver. "Just be as still as possible. If you start hurting, tell me and I'll stop." she said in her 'nurse voice'.

"Yes ma'am" Danny complied.

Ricki climbed onto the bed and strattled Dannys lower legs. She pulled the sheet down and then proceeded to pull the hospital gown up. Danny leaned his head back and closed his eyes in anticipation. Ricki ran her hands up along Dannys strong, muscular legs. She then leaned forward and kissed each leg. She looked up at Danny just to check and make sure he was ok. Dannys head was back and he had a smile on his face. She smiled and gently touched his long hard cock with her finger tips. Danny suck in a quick breath. "You ok?" Ricki asked concerned. "Um hmm" Danny murmured. Ricki wrapped her whole hand around Dannys rock hard cock. It felt good in her hand. She started to stroke it gently. "Hmmm, that feels good" Danny whispered. Ricki then leaned forward and kissed Dannys long hard cock. She flicked it with her tongue and kissed the head. She then took his cock into her mouth as far as it would go. Danny groaned from the pleasure he felt. Ricki sucked and slid her mouth up and down his erection. She gently took her hand and fondled his balls. Danny almost couldn't stand it. "Oh my god, that feels so good!" he gasped. Ricki continue to slide his cock in and out of her mouth. Danny could feel her breasts rubbing up against his legs. God he wanted her so bad! Ricki started sucking harder and moving faster her mouth faster up and down his cock. "Ricki, please, oh god, Ricki..."Danny moaned. He looked down and saw her mouth moving up and down on his cock and he almost lost it. "Ricki" he whispered, "I'm about to cum". She stopped for a moment and looked up at him. Her lips were red and a little swollen.  
"Do you want me to stop?" she asked coyly.

"Hell no!" Danny said, his face a mixture of pleasure and panic at the thought of her stopping.

Ricki returned her wet, warm mouth to Dannys waiting cock. She pumped him with her hand while she sucked the head of his throbbing cock. "Oh god, Ricki, I'm gonna cum...here it comes!" Dannys cum exploded into Rickis mouth. Ricki continued to suck while Danny orgasamed. Once she had taken all she could, she pulled back from him cock and gently stroked it with her hand. Danny looked at her with firey eyes. She was panting just as hard as he was. "Come here" he said gently. Ricki crawled up to lay beside him. He looked at her red, slightly swollen lips. He bent down and kissed her. His tongue darting in and out of her mouth with such fury. He started to move to be closer to her, but pain once again stoped him. He pulled back from the kiss, and just looked at Ricki. Ricki looked into Dannys flushed face. "You ok? Did you like it?" she asked a little uncertain. "Oh yeah...I liked it...couldn't you tell?" Danny said smiling. Ricki grinned right back at him. "When I get better, I will return the favor" Danny promised her. "We'll see" Ricki said winking at him. "Now, we had better get you dressed."Ricki said. She helped Danny up into a sitting position with his feet hanging over the side of the bed. His head felt a little dizzy but he wasn't sure if it was from his injuries or from what this amazing woman just did to him. Ricki expertly placed his shorts on him and had them pulled up without him ever having to stand up. She then helped him lie back down. He was starting to hurt pretty bad, but he didn't want to take any pain meds because all they did was make him sleep. He wanted to stay awake and talk to Ricki, and just be with her. "Are you hurting?" Ricki asked.

"Yeah, a little" he admitted.

"I'll get your nurse to get you some meds."

"Ok" he gave in. He ws hurting badly enough to realize that he needed something for the pain. After the nurse gave him the meds, Ricki sat down on the edge of the bed.

"I'm sorry" she said.

"For what?" Danny asked confused.

"I shouldn't have done that, it was too soon, I made the pain worse." she explained looking down at her hands.

Danny took his hand and gently pulled her chin up so she was looking at him. "Never, ever appologize for your feelings." he told her sternly. "I could have told you to stop, but I didn't want you to!"

Danny smiled at her and gently kissed her lips. Ricki smiled back.

"I love you Jersey boy" she said quietly.

"I love you too, beautiful". "Oh and by the way" he said dropping his eyes, "that is the most amazing blow job I've ever had." he said shyly. "In fact, it is the only one I've ever had".

Ricki was shocked to say the least, and didn't have time to say anything because the door suddenly opened up and Steve, Kono and Chin all came in bearing gifts. Ricki was quiet as she thought about what Danny had said. "That man is full of surprises" she thought happily. She wathced as Danny, Chin, Kono, and even health nut Steve munched on the cocoa puffs she had gotten earlier. She had completely forgotten about them! "Oh well" she thought, "what we did was so much better than some pastry!"

**H50*****Thank you to everyone who has read my story and/or commented on it. I really appreciate it!***H50**

The next week went by fairly uneventful. The doctor finally released Danny from the hospital, but told him he was not to go back to work for at least another 2 weeks. Ricki decided to take the next 2 weeks off from work to help care for him. Dannys parents also flew in from Newark, New Jersey to help out as well. When Danny introduced her to his parents, he said "Mom, Pop, this is Ricki, the most amazing and beautiful woman in the world." Both his mom, Janice, and his dad, Ben, were delighted to see their oldest son so happy despite what he had been through. "We are so happy to meet you Ricki" Janice said, smiling. "Danny has told us so much about you." Ben chimed in. Ricki blushed slightly and smiled shyly. "I am very happy to meet you both as well. Danny has told me alot about you too."

Getting Danny home and into bed proved to be difficult. Danny was still moving very slow, and was still in alot of pain. It took all three of the adults to get him up the stairs to his apartment and into his bed. Janice and Ben told Ricki that they were going to go to the grocery store and get something other than "man food". After they left Ricki sat down on the side the bed and just watched Danny. His blue eyes closed, his blonde hair messed up and hanging down on his forehead, even though he had combed it before they left the hospital. Ricki gently laid her hand on his wide, strong chest and felt his heart beat. Tears sprang into her eyes as she thought about how close she had come to loosing him. She turned her head away, blinking furiously to try and keep the tears from falling. "Hey sweetheart, whats wrong?" Danny asked quietly. Ricki jumped and swung her head back around. "I thought you were asleep." she breathed. "Not yet. Are my parents still here?" he asked. "No, they went to the store" Ricki answered. "Good" Danny said smiling. Danny pulled Rickis head down and kissed her passionately. His tounge gliding in and out of her mouth, tracing every curve of her lips. Hers doing the same. One of Rickis hands cradled Dannys face and the other went to the back of his head, entwining her fingers in his hair. Dannys good arm was wrapped around Ricki. They broke the kiss simultaneously, both in need of air. "God, I need you" Danny said huskily. "We can't" Ricki reminded him, "The doctor said no sex for at least another week." "I know, but that doesn't change how I feel" Danny told her. "I love you, and I want to show you every day." "I want to show you too" Ricki whispered, "As soon as you get well." "Ok" Danny finally gave in. "But hey" Ricki said smiling coyly, "That doesn't mean we can't have some great make out sessions." Danny laughed and then winced in pain. "I think you had better get some rest. I'll get your pain meds" Ricki told him in her sternest nurses voice. After Danny took the meds he asked Ricki to come and lay down with him. "I just want to hold you close" he told her. Ricki laid down beside him and rested her head on his good shoulder. She listened as his breathing became even and she knew he was asleep. She told herself to get up and do some work around the house, but she was so tired. She fell asleep before she could even think of anything that needed to be done.

The sound of the vacuum cleaner woke them both up. Ricki stretched and then realized that Dannys parents were the ones cleaning. She jumped up and ran into the bathroom to smooth her hair. "Where you going?" Danny asked drowsily. "To help your parents" Ricki said matter of factly. "Come here" Danny gestured with his good hand. He took her hand as she sat down. "They don't expect you to do anything. They know you have been at the hospital day and night with me and that you haven't been sleeping much. Just relax. They are great people. Now, help me get up, and we'll go down satirs and see what they are up to." Danny told her gently. Ricki helped him up and grabbed the pillows off the bed and a blanket and helped him down the stairs. Getting him down the stairs was much easier than getting him up them! As they both step into the living room, Janice looks up from the vacuum cleaner and smiles. "Glad to see you both up and around. We were afraid you guys were going to sleep through Danny's favorite dinner." she grinned, her smile looking so much like Danny's. Danny sniffed the air and said "Mmmmm. Smells delicious!" Ricki could smell what she thought was lasagna. "Get comfortable" Janice said. "Your dad and I would like to talk to the both of you". Danny looked at Ricki with his eyebrows raised and slowly walked over to the couch. He gingerly sat down and Ricki propped up his arm with one of the pillows and put the other one next to him on the couch in case he needed it. Ricki sat down beside him. Ben and Janice came and sat down on the loveseat across from the younger couple. "Now" Janice started, "We have a question for Ricki. We don't mean to pry, but we were wondering if 'Ricki' was your real name?" Danny and Ricki both chuckled. "Danny asked me that after we first met" Ricki told them smiling. "No, it is not my real name. My real name is Richelle." she said. "So then why do you go by 'Ricki'? Ben asked. "Well" Ricki began, "I was named after my mom. Her name was also Richelle, and so my dad knicknamed me 'Ricki' so it didn't confuse things." Ricki explained. "You said 'was'. Did she pass away?" Janice asked gently. Ricki took a deep breath. Toms parents had been dead long before she ever met him so she had never done this before. She felt Dannys hand wrap around hers and give her a loving squeeze. "My mom died when I was 5. She had breast cancer." Ricki said quietly. "I am so sorry dear." Janice said. "What about your father?" Ben asked. "My father died when I was 12 from a massive heart attack." Ricki could feel tears starting to gather in her eyes. "After my mom died, my dad moved me here to Hawaii to be closer to his brother. Then after my dad died, I lived with my Uncle John and Aunt Mary. My Aunt Mary was killed by a drunk driver about 2 years later, and then Uncle John was killed almost a year ago." Rick paused for a breath, the tears flowing freely down her cheeks now. "Oh Ricki, I am so sorry" Janice said tears in her own eyes. Ben quietly cleared his throat and looked at Danny and Ricki. "Well, I think thats enough serious talk for now. How 'bout we get this dinner on the table?" Ben said standing up. "Do you think you can eat at the table, son?" he asked Danny with concern. "Yeah, Pop, I think I will be ok". Danny answered. Ricki got up to help get things on the table for dinner and was surprised when Janice stood up and hugged her fiercly. "I am so sorry for all the loss you have dealt with in your life.". Ricki hugged her back "Thanks. I have times when I get really down about it, but I try not to dwell on it too much." Ricki said honestly.

They all headed to the kitchen/dining room. Ricki helped Danny sit down and then offered to help Janice get it on the table. They got everything on the table and they all sat down. Janice had made homemade lasagna, garlic bread, a salad, and had homemade chocolate cake for desert. They all ate their fill while talking about what Dannys sisters were doing and his brother, Matt. Danny told them about Grace's program at school, and all the things she was doing. After dinner Janice and Ben insisted that the younger couple head up stairs and get Danny back into bed while they cleaned up. As Danny settled back into bed, Ricki asked him "Do you want me to stay?". "I would love for you to stay, but only if you want to." he said. "I'll stay, but I will have to go home and get some clothes and stuff in the morning." she told him. "Ok" Danny agreed. Ricki went over to Dannys dresser and looked for the pair a pair of pj pants. She finally found a pair of green flannel pants, and then went looking for a tshirt in the closet. Ben knocked on Dannys door and told him that they were going to lock up and head to the hotel. "We'll be back in the morning, son. Get some sleep. We love you." "Love you guys too Pop" Danny said. After Janice and Ben had left, Ricki came out of the closet with one of Danny's HPD tshirts and his green flannel pj pants on. She looked so sexy in his clothes. "I'm glad we are finally alone" Danny said. "Why?" Ricki asked sitting down on the bed. "So I can do this" he said as he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him. He pulled her into a hard kiss. He had to touch her. He slipped his good hand up the tshirt so he could feel her naked breast. Her nipple puckered at his touch. Danny looked into her eyes and told her to lay down. "Danny, we aren't supposed to" Ricki reminded him. "We aren't" he said simply. Ricki was confused but she did what he asked her to. Danny moved down the bed until he was sitting at her hips. She saw a grimace of pain cross his face. "Danny, we don't..." "Shhh" he quieted her. "Lay down" he said gently. "Ok" Ricki said giving in, knowing it was useless to argue. Danny pulled at the legs of the pj pants until he almost had them off. Ricki kicked the pants off the rest of the way. She sat up on her elbows and grinned at Danny, "What are you doing?" she asked. Danny had a sexy grin on his face. "you'll see" was all he would say. She laid back down. He tucked one finger into the band of her panties. He slowly pulled them off. He ran his hand up her leg and felt her quiver. He gently touched her womanhood. Ricki sucked in a sharp breath. Danny then separated her soft lips with gentle fingers. The moment his fingertip touched her clit, Ricki felt this amazing feeling shoot through her entire body. She was so wet, so hot. "Oh Danny" Ricki moaned as he stroked her clit. Ricki started to lift her hips slightly so Danny took that opportunity to softly slip one finger into her and plunge it deep. Ricki moaned and lifted her hips higher. Danny slipped another finger into her, plunging them both deep. He slowly slid them out and in, out and in, out and in. Ricki's breathing was getting quicker and quicker. Danny moved his fingers out and in faster. Ricki almost couldn't take anymore. "Oh god, Danny...Danny, please..." Ricki pleaded with him. Danny moved his fingers as fast as he could. "Oh baby, baby" Ricki cried out. "Let yourself go, baby" Danny told her. Ricki's hips lifted off the bed one last time and she let out a scream. She lay on the bed, panting. Danny slowly withdrew his fingers and he heard a small whimper escape from Ricki's lips. He laid back down beside her and looked at her flushed face, messed up hair, and glassy eyes. She smiled up at him. "Did you like it?" he asked grinning at her. She answered him with a sweet and gentle kiss. "I love you Jersey boy". she quietly told him. "I love you too." Danny sincerely told her. He kissed her gently again and settled down with the woman he loved in his arms. They both fell asleep thinking about how lucky they each were to have the other one.

_*****This chapter was inspired by the song "Marry Me" by Train. Thanks for reading!*****_

1 moth later…

Danny groaned as the alarm clock went off. He hated mornings. But he had to get off his ass and go to work. Ricki was still sleeping soundly beside him. He laid there and just watched her sleep for a moment. He couldn't believe he was lucky enough to have this incredibly beautiful woman in his life, let alone his bed! He got up, showered and got dressed for work. As he strapped his gun onto his belt, Ricki started to stir. "Hey beautiful", he said sweetly. "Hi" Ricki said sleepily. "I have to go into work for a little bit, but I'll be back around 2 to pick you up" he told her. Danny has been planning something special for them for the last few days, but had been very secretive about it. "Ok. I think I'll go back to sleep for a little bit" Ricki said yawning. Danny leaned down and kissed her softly and whispered "I love you". "Love you, too" Ricki said smiling sleepily at him. She watched him walk out of the room thinking "Man, he's got a cute ass" before sleep claimed her once again.

At 2pm on the dot Danny told Steve he was leaving for the day. Steve nodded and gave him a knowing smile. Steve knew all about Danny's plan, as did Kono and Chin, but they had told no one else! Ricki was at the apartment dressed in a sleeveless silk chiffon dress with shades of burgundy, rust and pink. It had two different hemlines which made it swing around her knees when she walked. It had decorative ties at the shoulders and a plunging neckline. She wore black strappy sandals with rhinestones on them that sparkled in the sunlight. Her long brown hair hung down her back in curls. She had put a sparkling barrette in her hair that held back the smaller section of her side part. When Danny walked in, he stopped and stared. He was speechless. She looked more beautiful than he had ever seen her look. "Do I look ok?" Ricki asked concerned she wasn't dressed appropriately. "You look amazing!" Danny said giving her a big smile. "Let me change and then we'll go" he told her walking into the bedroom.

Once they left and were in the car, Ricki asked where they were going. "It's a surprise" was all Danny would say. A few minutes later they pulled up in front of the Ali'i Tower of the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikiki. Danny took Ricki's hand as he helped her out of the car. They walked into the luxurious hotel and went straight to the front desk. "Reservation for Williams" Danny told the young lady at the front desk. "Of course, Mr. Williams. Here is your room key. Enjoy your stay." the young lady said smiling at the couple. "Danny, I didn't bring any clothes with me" Ricki whispered, worried. "Don't worry about it," Danny assured her, "its all been taken care of.". As they got to their room, Danny took Ricki's hand and led her into the room. She gasped at what she saw. Flowers, everywhere! Roses of every color, orchids, carnations, flowers she couldn't even name were all in vases set all over the room. "Oh Danny, they are beautiful." she told him tears standing in her eyes. Danny walked over to a table where there was a chilling bottle of champagne, and 2 champagne flutes. Danny opened the bottle and poured them both a glass. He handed one to Ricki and raised his in a toast, "To us, and a night full of surprises." he said. They gently clinked the glasses and both took a sip of the bubbly champagne. Ricki set her glass down and took Danny's from him and set his down too. She took hold of Danny's hands and pulled him close. He gladly wrapped his strong arms around her as she put her arms around his neck. She put her head on his shoulder and sighed. "What was that for?" Danny whispered in her ear. "I am just so happy, and in love" Ricki whispered back. Danny held her close for a few more minutes and then he took her hand and led her out onto the balcony. On the table outside were more flowers. They each took a chair and sat and talked and just held hands. As the sun was starting to go down, Danny asked Ricki if she was ready for dinner. Ricki smiled and said "Sure". They went downstairs and walked over to the Rainbow Tower of the hotel. They ate at the Bali Steak and Seafood. They enjoyed the beautiful ocean view and just being in each others company. After dinner they went for a walk on the beach. Ricki took her sandals off, and Danny (who doesn't really like the beach) even took his off and enjoyed walking in the warm sand. The wind was starting to pick up and Ricki shivered a little so Danny decided it was time to go back to the room. When they walked in to the room, Ricki gasped again at what she saw. Some of the flowers had been removed and in their place were candles. All lit and scattered around the room. There were also 2 small suitcases next to the king size bed. Ricki didn't have time to ask where they came from because Danny captured her in a long passionate kiss. As they both broke away for air Danny smiled at her. He then pulled out his phone and began punching some buttons on it. "What are you doing?" Ricki asked. But Danny didn't answer. Instead music began to play from his phone. "Dance with me?" he asked. Danny took her into his arms and they swayed slowly to the music. As the chorus of the song began Danny started to softly sing in her ear. "Marry Me, Today and every day…Marry Me, If I ever get the nerve to say hello in this café, say you will, say you will." Danny then let go of Ricki and got down on one knee. He pulled out a black velvet ring box and looked up at her. "Ricki, I love you so much. More than I ever thought I could love someone. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" Danny's hands shook and his heart pounded as he opened the ring box. Nestled inside the black velvet was a stunning 3 stone diamond ring. Tears were streaming down Ricki's face as Danny pulled the ring out and put it on her finger. He looked up at her nervously. Ricki smiled at him through her tears, nodded and whispered "Yes". Danny stood up and hugged her as if he would never let go. He finally pulled back and took her face in his hands. He wiped away her tears with his thumbs. He gently kissed her. "I love you Danny" Ricki told him quietly. Danny led her over to the couch and they sat down. "I want to tell you why I chose the ring I did." he started. "I know normally the woman picks it out, but I wanted all of this to be a surprise, so Kono and Steve helped me pick it out."

Ricki mentally giggled at the thought of her cousin, super SEAL Steve, picking out rings! "I wanted something that would mean something to the both of us, so I picked this one. It has 3 stones, one for the past, one for the present, and one for the future. I thought we both have a past, we are in the present, and we have the future together." Danny said all in one breath. "I love it! It's beautiful!" Ricki told him. "I think it's perfect" she said smiling at him. She stood up and held out her hand. Danny took it and stood up. Ricki led him to the king sized bed. "Make love to me" she whispered in his ear. Danny didn't have to be asked twice…

_****I know it is a little sappy, and I have no idea if Danno sings or not, but I had fun writing it! Also, I know I didn't go into detail at the end, but I thought it would take away from the whole story! Please read and let me know what you think! Thanks!*****_

_****I haven't gotten any reviews yet, so either this story sucks really bad, or maybe nobody wants to comment! Either way, I enjoyed writing this! It still isn't finished! I hope you enjoy! Love to all! ****_

_***********************************H50**********************H50***********************************************************************_

As the morning sun peaked through the curtains of the hotel room, Ricki slowly opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was the ring Danny had given her the night before. She smiled at the way it sparkled in the sunlight. She turned over and saw that Danny was still sound asleep. "Hmm" she thought with a chuckle, "after what we did last night, I'm surprised we aren't both still dead to the world.". She looked at Danny's messed up blonde hair and tan face. How she loved this man! And she was going to marry him! Ricki just watched him sleep for a few minutes. She then decided to wake him up. "Hey Jersey boy" she called softly. "Time to wake up.". Danny groaned and stretched. Ricki smiled and climbed on top of him stratling his hips. She ran her finger tips down his bare chest. Danny opened his eyes and grinned at her. She had that look in her eyes. The one he had seen the first time they made love, the same one he had seen last night. The look that told him she needed him, loved him, couldn't live without him. Ricki leaned down and kissed him softly. He ran his hands over her shoulders and down her bare back. The feel of her full breasts against his chest was enough to make him go crazy. "Ricki" he whispered. "Shh" was all she said. He felt her hips grind against his. He lifted his hips in return. She felt her way down to his hard cock. She lifted her hips and placed his cock at the opening of her womanhood. She looked him in the eye and pushed her hips down hard. Danny moaned loudly. His hands found hers and their fingers entwined as she rode his cock. Her hips were grinding harder and faster, her orgasm coming fast. He watched her as she came. Her head fell back, her fingers dug into his knuckles, her hips starting to slow down. A smile spread over her lips as she looked at him, her face glowing. Danny looked at her with a pleading look. She slowly started to grind her hips again. Danny moaned softly, unable to hold it back. His orgasm was coming fast too. He gripped her hands and thrust his hips up in response to her downward grind. Her hips ground down hard on his and Danny exploded into her. Danny bit his bottom lip as he came. He wanted to shout out her name, but being quiet was so sexy, so mysterious. Ricki didn't stop. She continued to ride him. He knew she was going to orgasm again. This time Ricki couldn't hold back the gasp and moan that escaped from her lips. "Danny" she gasped as her orgasm erupted inside of her. Both panting, she fell against his chest and just laid there. Danny gladly held her close. He loved the smell of her hair, the feel of her skin against his. He gently brushed back her hair from her face and found her chin. He lifted her face up to his and kissed her so softly. "I love you" he whispered to her. "I love you, too" she whispered back. She rolled off of him and snuggled up beside him, her head on his chest, his arm around her shoulders. "So," she started, "who are we going to tell first?"

"Grace" they both said at the same time and then laughed.

"Why don't we get dressed, and we'll go get Grace for lunch, and tell her then?" Danny suggested.

"Sounds good to me" Ricki replied.

They both took showers and got dressed. As Ricki was finishing up, Danny called Rachel and made plans to take Grace to lunch. As they drove over to Rachel and Stan's, Ricki asked Danny how he had gotten her clothes and stuff to the room without her knowing. Danny grinned sheepishly. "Chin brought them, but Kono went and got them while we were eating dinner." he explained. Ricki grinned and just shook her head. So they had all been in on the whole thing and no one said a thing!

Once they picked up Grace, they took her to her favorite restaurant on the island, Da Big Kahuna's pizza. As they ate, Danny talked to Grace about how he and Ricki loved each other. Grace looked up at him, then at Ricki and then back at her dad, and asked "when are you getting married?". Danny and Ricki just looked at each other and started laughing. "We aren't sure yet, but your daddy asked me last night and I said 'yes'." Ricki told her. Grace had a huge smile on her face. "I take it you approve?" Danny asked his precious daughter. "Yes" Grace said nodding happily. Ricki was relieved! She loved Grace and knew Grace loved her, but Danny was still her daddy. "I am glad sweetie" Ricki told her. Grace jumped up and gave Ricki a big hug. "I love you, Ricki" she said. Ricki hugged her back and said "I love you to Gracie." Danny smiled at the sight of his two 'girls' so happy. Grace then came over and gave Danny a hug. "I love you, Danno" she told her daddy. "I love you too Monkey" Danny said around the lump in his throat. He didn't think he had ever been this happy.


	2. Chapter 2

**H50*****Thank you to everyone who has read my story and/or commented on it. I really appreciate it!***H50**

The next week went by fairly uneventful. The doctor finally released Danny from the hospital, but told him he was not to go back to work for at least another 2 weeks. Ricki decided to take the next 2 weeks off from work to help care for him. Dannys parents also flew in from Newark, New Jersey to help out as well. When Danny introduced her to his parents, he said "Mom, Pop, this is Ricki, the most amazing and beautiful woman in the world." Both his mom, Janice, and his dad, Ben, were delighted to see their oldest son so happy despite what he had been through. "We are so happy to meet you Ricki" Janice said, smiling. "Danny has told us so much about you." Ben chimed in. Ricki blushed slightly and smiled shyly. "I am very happy to meet you both as well. Danny has told me alot about you too."

Getting Danny home and into bed proved to be difficult. Danny was still moving very slow, and was still in alot of pain. It took all three of the adults to get him up the stairs to his apartment and into his bed. Janice and Ben told Ricki that they were going to go to the grocery store and get something other than "man food". After they left Ricki sat down on the side the bed and just watched Danny. His blue eyes closed, his blonde hair messed up and hanging down on his forehead, even though he had combed it before they left the hospital. Ricki gently laid her hand on his wide, strong chest and felt his heart beat. Tears sprang into her eyes as she thought about how close she had come to loosing him. She turned her head away, blinking furiously to try and keep the tears from falling. "Hey sweetheart, whats wrong?" Danny asked quietly. Ricki jumped and swung her head back around. "I thought you were asleep." she breathed. "Not yet. Are my parents still here?" he asked. "No, they went to the store" Ricki answered. "Good" Danny said smiling. Danny pulled Rickis head down and kissed her passionately. His tounge gliding in and out of her mouth, tracing every curve of her lips. Hers doing the same. One of Rickis hands cradled Dannys face and the other went to the back of his head, entwining her fingers in his hair. Dannys good arm was wrapped around Ricki. They broke the kiss simultaneously, both in need of air. "God, I need you" Danny said huskily. "We can't" Ricki reminded him, "The doctor said no sex for at least another week." "I know, but that doesn't change how I feel" Danny told her. "I love you, and I want to show you every day." "I want to show you too" Ricki whispered, "As soon as you get well." "Ok" Danny finally gave in. "But hey" Ricki said smiling coyly, "That doesn't mean we can't have some great make out sessions." Danny laughed and then winced in pain. "I think you had better get some rest. I'll get your pain meds" Ricki told him in her sternest nurses voice. After Danny took the meds he asked Ricki to come and lay down with him. "I just want to hold you close" he told her. Ricki laid down beside him and rested her head on his good shoulder. She listened as his breathing became even and she knew he was asleep. She told herself to get up and do some work around the house, but she was so tired. She fell asleep before she could even think of anything that needed to be done.

The sound of the vacuum cleaner woke them both up. Ricki stretched and then realized that Dannys parents were the ones cleaning. She jumped up and ran into the bathroom to smooth her hair. "Where you going?" Danny asked drowsily. "To help your parents" Ricki said matter of factly. "Come here" Danny gestured with his good hand. He took her hand as she sat down. "They don't expect you to do anything. They know you have been at the hospital day and night with me and that you haven't been sleeping much. Just relax. They are great people. Now, help me get up, and we'll go down satirs and see what they are up to." Danny told her gently. Ricki helped him up and grabbed the pillows off the bed and a blanket and helped him down the stairs. Getting him down the stairs was much easier than getting him up them! As they both step into the living room, Janice looks up from the vacuum cleaner and smiles. "Glad to see you both up and around. We were afraid you guys were going to sleep through Danny's favorite dinner." she grinned, her smile looking so much like Danny's. Danny sniffed the air and said "Mmmmm. Smells delicious!" Ricki could smell what she thought was lasagna. "Get comfortable" Janice said. "Your dad and I would like to talk to the both of you". Danny looked at Ricki with his eyebrows raised and slowly walked over to the couch. He gingerly sat down and Ricki propped up his arm with one of the pillows and put the other one next to him on the couch in case he needed it. Ricki sat down beside him. Ben and Janice came and sat down on the loveseat across from the younger couple. "Now" Janice started, "We have a question for Ricki. We don't mean to pry, but we were wondering if 'Ricki' was your real name?" Danny and Ricki both chuckled. "Danny asked me that after we first met" Ricki told them smiling. "No, it is not my real name. My real name is Richelle." she said. "So then why do you go by 'Ricki'? Ben asked. "Well" Ricki began, "I was named after my mom. Her name was also Richelle, and so my dad knicknamed me 'Ricki' so it didn't confuse things." Ricki explained. "You said 'was'. Did she pass away?" Janice asked gently. Ricki took a deep breath. Toms parents had been dead long before she ever met him so she had never done this before. She felt Dannys hand wrap around hers and give her a loving squeeze. "My mom died when I was 5. She had breast cancer." Ricki said quietly. "I am so sorry dear." Janice said. "What about your father?" Ben asked. "My father died when I was 12 from a massive heart attack." Ricki could feel tears starting to gather in her eyes. "After my mom died, my dad moved me here to Hawaii to be closer to his brother. Then after my dad died, I lived with my Uncle John and Aunt Mary. My Aunt Mary was killed by a drunk driver about 2 years later, and then Uncle John was killed almost a year ago." Rick paused for a breath, the tears flowing freely down her cheeks now. "Oh Ricki, I am so sorry" Janice said tears in her own eyes. Ben quietly cleared his throat and looked at Danny and Ricki. "Well, I think thats enough serious talk for now. How 'bout we get this dinner on the table?" Ben said standing up. "Do you think you can eat at the table, son?" he asked Danny with concern. "Yeah, Pop, I think I will be ok". Danny answered. Ricki got up to help get things on the table for dinner and was surprised when Janice stood up and hugged her fiercely. "I am so sorry for all the loss you have dealt with in your life.". Ricki hugged her back "Thanks. I have times when I get really down about it, but I try not to dwell on it too much." Ricki said honestly.

They all headed to the kitchen/dining room. Ricki helped Danny sit down and then offered to help Janice get it on the table. They got everything on the table and they all sat down. Janice had made homemade lasagna, garlic bread, a salad, and had homemade chocolate cake for desert. They all ate their fill while talking about what Dannys sisters were doing and his brother, Matt. Danny told them about Grace's program at school, and all the things she was doing. After dinner Janice and Ben insisted that the younger couple head up stairs and get Danny back into bed while they cleaned up. As Danny settled back into bed, Ricki asked him "Do you want me to stay?". "I would love for you to stay, but only if you want to." he said. "I'll stay, but I will have to go home and get some clothes and stuff in the morning." she told him. "Ok" Danny agreed. Ricki went over to Dannys dresser and looked for the pair a pair of pj pants. She finally found a pair of green flannel pants, and then went looking for a tshirt in the closet. Ben knocked on Dannys door and told him that they were going to lock up and head to the hotel. "We'll be back in the morning, son. Get some sleep. We love you." "Love you guys too Pop" Danny said. After Janice and Ben had left, Ricki came out of the closet with one of Danny's HPD tshirts and his green flannel pj pants on. She looked so sexy in his clothes. "I'm glad we are finally alone" Danny said. "Why?" Ricki asked sitting down on the bed. "So I can do this" he said as he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him. He pulled her into a hard kiss. He had to touch her. He slipped his good hand up the tshirt so he could feel her naked breast. Her nipple puckered at his touch. Danny looked into her eyes and told her to lay down. "Danny, we aren't supposed to" Ricki reminded him. "We aren't" he said simply. Ricki was confused but she did what he asked her to. Danny moved down the bed until he was sitting at her hips. She saw a grimace of pain cross his face. "Danny, we don't..." "Shhh" he quieted her. "Lay down" he said gently. "Ok" Ricki said giving in, knowing it was useless to argue. Danny pulled at the legs of the pj pants until he almost had them off. Ricki kicked the pants off the rest of the way. She sat up on her elbows and grinned at Danny, "What are you doing?" she asked. Danny had a sexy grin on his face. "you'll see" was all he would say. She laid back down. He tucked one finger into the band of her panties. He slowly pulled them off. He ran his hand up her leg and felt her quiver. He gently touched her womanhood. Ricki sucked in a sharp breath. Danny then separated her soft lips with gentle fingers. The moment his fingertip touched her clit, Ricki felt this amazing feeling shoot through her entire body. She was so wet, so hot. "Oh Danny" Ricki moaned as he stroked her clit. Ricki started to lift her hips slightly so Danny took that opportunity to softly slip one finger into her and plunge it deep. Ricki moaned and lifted her hips higher. Danny slipped another finger into her, plunging them both deep. He slowly slid them out and in, out and in, out and in. Ricki's breathing was getting quicker and quicker. Danny moved his fingers out and in faster. Ricki almost couldn't take anymore. "Oh god, Danny...Danny, please..." Ricki pleaded with him. Danny moved his fingers as fast as he could. "Oh baby, baby" Ricki cried out. "Let yourself go, baby" Danny told her. Ricki's hips lifted off the bed one last time and she let out a scream. She lay on the bed, panting. Danny slowly withdrew his fingers and he heard a small whimper escape from Ricki's lips. He laid back down beside her and looked at her flushed face, messed up hair, and glassy eyes. She smiled up at him. "Did you like it?" he asked grinning at her. She answered him with a sweet and gentle kiss. "I love you Jersey boy". she quietly told him. "I love you too." Danny sincerely told her. He kissed her gently again and settled down with the woman he loved in his arms. They both fell asleep thinking about how lucky they each were to have the other one.


	3. Chapter 3

***This chapter was inspired by the song "Marry Me" by Train. Thanks for reading!***

1 moth later…

Danny groaned as the alarm clock went off. He hated mornings. But he had to get off his ass and go to work. Ricki was still sleeping soundly beside him. He laid there and just watched her sleep for a moment. He couldn't believe he was lucky enough to have this incredibly beautiful woman in his life, let alone his bed! He got up, showered and got dressed for work. As he strapped his gun onto his belt, Ricki started to stir. "Hey beautiful", he said sweetly. "Hi" Ricki said sleepily. "I have to go into work for a little bit, but I'll be back around 2 to pick you up" he told her. Danny has been planning something special for them for the last few days, but had been very secretive about it. "Ok. I think I'll go back to sleep for a little bit" Ricki said yawning. Danny leaned down and kissed her softly and whispered "I love you". "Love you, too" Ricki said smiling sleepily at him. She watched him walk out of the room thinking "Man, he's got a cute ass" before sleep claimed her once again.

At 2pm on the dot Danny told Steve he was leaving for the day. Steve nodded and gave him a knowing smile. Steve knew all about Danny's plan, as did Kono and Chin, but they had told no one else! Ricki was at the apartment dressed in a sleeveless silk chiffon dress with shades of burgundy, rust and pink. It had two different hemlines which made it swing around her knees when she walked. It had decorative ties at the shoulders and a plunging neckline. She wore black strappy sandals with rhinestones on them that sparkled in the sunlight. Her long brown hair hung down her back in curls. She had put a sparkling barrette in her hair that held back the smaller section of her side part. When Danny walked in, he stopped and stared. He was speechless. She looked more beautiful than he had ever seen her look. "Do I look ok?" Ricki asked concerned she wasn't dressed appropriately. "You look amazing!" Danny said giving her a big smile. "Let me change and then we'll go" he told her walking into the bedroom.

Once they left and were in the car, Ricki asked where they were going. "It's a surprise" was all Danny would say. A few minutes later they pulled up in front of the Ali'i Tower of the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikiki. Danny took Ricki's hand as he helped her out of the car. They walked into the luxurious hotel and went straight to the front desk. "Reservation for Williams" Danny told the young lady at the front desk. "Of course, Mr. Williams. Here is your room key. Enjoy your stay." the young lady said smiling at the couple. "Danny, I didn't bring any clothes with me" Ricki whispered, worried. "Don't worry about it," Danny assured her, "its all been taken care of.". As they got to their room, Danny took Ricki's hand and led her into the room. She gasped at what she saw. Flowers, everywhere! Roses of every color, orchids, carnations, flowers she couldn't even name were all in vases set all over the room. "Oh Danny, they are beautiful." she told him tears standing in her eyes. Danny walked over to a table where there was a chilling bottle of champagne, and 2 champagne flutes. Danny opened the bottle and poured them both a glass. He handed one to Ricki and raised his in a toast, "To us, and a night full of surprises." he said. They gently clinked the glasses and both took a sip of the bubbly champagne. Ricki set her glass down and took Danny's from him and set his down too. She took hold of Danny's hands and pulled him close. He gladly wrapped his strong arms around her as she put her arms around his neck. She put her head on his shoulder and sighed. "What was that for?" Danny whispered in her ear. "I am just so happy, and in love" Ricki whispered back. Danny held her close for a few more minutes and then he took her hand and led her out onto the balcony. On the table outside were more flowers. They each took a chair and sat and talked and just held hands. As the sun was starting to go down, Danny asked Ricki if she was ready for dinner. Ricki smiled and said "Sure". They went downstairs and walked over to the Rainbow Tower of the hotel. They ate at the Bali Steak and Seafood. They enjoyed the beautiful ocean view and just being in each others company. After dinner they went for a walk on the beach. Ricki took her sandals off, and Danny (who doesn't really like the beach) even took his off and enjoyed walking in the warm sand. The wind was starting to pick up and Ricki shivered a little so Danny decided it was time to go back to the room. When they walked in to the room, Ricki gasped again at what she saw. Some of the flowers had been removed and in their place were candles. All lit and scattered around the room. There were also 2 small suitcases next to the king size bed. Ricki didn't have time to ask where they came from because Danny captured her in a long passionate kiss. As they both broke away for air Danny smiled at her. He then pulled out his phone and began punching some buttons on it. "What are you doing?" Ricki asked. But Danny didn't answer. Instead music began to play from his phone. "Dance with me?" he asked. Danny took her into his arms and they swayed slowly to the music. As the chorus of the song began Danny started to softly sing in her ear. "Marry Me, Today and every day…Marry Me, If I ever get the nerve to say hello in this café, say you will, say you will." Danny then let go of Ricki and got down on one knee. He pulled out a black velvet ring box and looked up at her. "Ricki, I love you so much. More than I ever thought I could love someone. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" Danny's hands shook and his heart pounded as he opened the ring box. Nestled inside the black velvet was a stunning 3 stone diamond ring. Tears were streaming down Ricki's face as Danny pulled the ring out and put it on her finger. He looked up at her nervously. Ricki smiled at him through her tears, nodded and whispered "Yes". Danny stood up and hugged her as if he would never let go. He finally pulled back and took her face in his hands. He wiped away her tears with his thumbs. He gently kissed her. "I love you Danny" Ricki told him quietly. Danny led her over to the couch and they sat down. "I want to tell you why I chose the ring I did." he started. "I know normally the woman picks it out, but I wanted all of this to be a surprise, so Kono and Steve helped me pick it out."

Ricki mentally giggled at the thought of her cousin, super SEAL Steve, picking out rings! "I wanted something that would mean something to the both of us, so I picked this one. It has 3 stones, one for the past, one for the present, and one for the future. I thought we both have a past, we are in the present, and we have "Make love to me" she whispered in his ear. Danny didn't have to be asked twice…

**I know it is a little sappy, and I have no idea if Danno sings or not, but I had fun writing it! Also, I know I didn't go into detail at the end, but I thought it would take away from the whole story! Please read and let me know what you think! Thanks!***


	4. Chapter 4

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As the morning sun peaked through the curtains of the hotel room, Ricki slowly opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was the ring Danny had given her the night before. She smiled at the way it sparkled in the sunlight. She turned over and saw that Danny was still sound asleep. "Hmm" she thought with a chuckle, "after what we did last night, I'm surprised we aren't both still dead to the world.". She looked at Danny's messed up blonde hair and tan face. How she loved this man! And she was going to marry him! Ricki just watched him sleep for a few minutes. She then decided to wake him up. "Hey Jersey boy" she called softly. "Time to wake up.". Danny groaned and stretched. Ricki smiled and climbed on top of him stratling his hips. She ran her finger tips down his bare chest. Danny opened his eyes and grinned at her. She had that look in her eyes. The one he had seen the first time they made love, the same one he had seen last night. The look that told him she needed him, loved him, couldn't live without him. Ricki leaned down and kissed him softly. He ran his hands over her shoulders and down her bare back. The feel of her full breasts against his chest was enough to make him go crazy. "Ricki" he whispered. "Shh" was all she said. He felt her hips grind against his. He lifted his hips in return. She felt her way down to his hard cock. She lifted her hips and placed his cock at the opening of her womanhood. She looked him in the eye and pushed her hips down hard. Danny moaned loudly. His hands found hers and their fingers entwined as she rode his cock. Her hips were grinding harder and faster, her orgasm coming fast. He watched her as she came. Her head fell back, her fingers dug into his knuckles, her hips starting to slow down. A smile spread over her lips as she looked at him, her face glowing. Danny looked at her with a pleading look. She slowly started to grind her hips again. Danny moaned softly, unable to hold it back. His orgasm was coming fast too. He gripped her hands and thrust his hips up in response to her downward grind. Her hips ground down hard on his and Danny exploded into her. Danny bit his bottom lip as he came. He wanted to shout out her name, but being quiet was so sexy, so mysterious. Ricki didn't stop. She continued to ride him. He knew she was going to orgasm again. This time Ricki couldn't hold back the gasp and moan that escaped from her lips. "Danny" she gasped as her orgasm erupted inside of her. Both panting, she fell against his chest and just laid there. Danny gladly held her close. He loved the smell of her hair, the feel of her skin against his. He gently brushed back her hair from her face and found her chin. He lifted her face up to his and kissed her so softly. "I love you" he whispered to her. "I love you, too" she whispered back. She rolled off of him and snuggled up beside him, her head on his chest, his arm around her shoulders. "So," she started, "who are we going to tell first?"

"Grace" they both said at the same time and then laughed.

"Why don't we get dressed, and we'll go get Grace for lunch, and tell her then?" Danny suggested.

"Sounds good to me" Ricki replied.

They both took showers and got dressed. As Ricki was finishing up, Danny called Rachel and made plans to take Grace to lunch. As they drove over to Rachel and Stan's, Ricki asked Danny how he had gotten her clothes and stuff to the room without her knowing. Danny grinned sheepishly. "Chin brought them, but Kono went and got them while we were eating dinner." he explained. Ricki grinned and just shook her head. So they had all been in on the whole thing and no one said a thing!

Once they picked up Grace, they took her to her favorite restaurant on the island, Da Big Kahuna's pizza. As they ate, Danny talked to Grace about how he and Ricki loved each other. Grace looked up at him, then at Ricki and then back at her dad, and asked "when are you getting married?". Danny and Ricki just looked at each other and started laughing. "We aren't sure yet, but your daddy asked me last night and I said 'yes'." Ricki told her. Grace had a huge smile on her face. "I take it you approve?" Danny asked his precious daughter. "Yes" Grace said nodding happily. Ricki was relieved! She loved Grace and knew Grace loved her, but Danny was still her daddy. "I am glad sweetie" Ricki told her. Grace jumped up and gave Ricki a big hug. "I love you, Ricki" she said. Ricki hugged her back and said "I love you to Gracie." Danny smiled at the sight of his two 'girls' so happy. Grace then came over and gave Danny a hug. "I love you, Danno" she told her daddy. "I love you too Monkey" Danny said around the lump in his throat. He didn't think he had ever been this happy.


	5. Chapter 5

**_**I took some advice and I am going to slow this one down a bit and let everyone get to know Ricki and everything she has gone through. This chapter and defiantely the next one are going to be pretty much strictly about Ricki and her life before Danny. I hope everyone enjoys his story! I have enjoyed writing it! Also, I have FINALLY figured out how to do the 'chapter' thing on this website! Sorry! I am computer igorant! Anywho! Please read and review! Love to you all!**_**

**_**P.S. I don't own any of this! I only wish I did!** _**

_June 2007_

_Ricki lay as still and quiet as she could. She didn't want to wake Tom up. He didn't like it when she did that. She cringed as her phone began to buzz. She quietly got out of bed and made a beeline for the living room. "Hey Annie" she said once she was far enough away that she wouldn't wake Tom up. Annie Markam was her best friend. They had met in college and been almost inseparable ever since. They were both nurses at Hawaii Medical Center West, Ricki in Labor and Delivery and Annie in Pediatrics. "Hey girl! Meet me at the beach. I gotta show you something." Annie told her excitedly. "Ok" Ricki sighed. Annie was always so excited about everything. Ricki crept back into the bedroom and got her bikini and beach bag that had her towel, sunscreen and a few other essentials in it. She left Tom a note and told him she would be back in about an hour. _

_She met Annie at the beach in their favorite spot. Annie was waiting impatiently for her to get there. As soon as Ricki sat down Annie shoved her left hand in Ricki's face. "Look" she squealed, "Josh proposed last night!" Ricki threw her arms around Annie and hugged her. "I'm so happy for you!"_

"_The only problem is" Annie started, looking very serious, "Josh got the job in Washington with Boeing, so we'll be moving there in 2 weeks." Ricki felt her breath leave her lungs. 2 weeks? What would she do without Annie? Annie was her only escape from Tom. She looked at Annie with tears in her eyes. "I'm happy for you and Josh. Really. I'm just going to miss you so much!" Annie and Ricki were both crying now. "Well, we will have a big party before we go" Annie promised. They hugged once more and Ricki said she had to go. _

_Once back at the apartment Ricki and Tom shared, she quietly let herself in the front door. She saw Tom sitting at the dining room table sipping coffee. She swallowed hard and hoped he was in a good mood. "Hey" she called out. Tom turned slowly and glared at her. "Oh God" she thought. Tom slowly stood up and walked towards her. "Where in the hell have you been?" he asked through clenched teeth. "I met Annie at the beach. I left you a note" Ricki answered meekly. "A note…A NOTE?" Tom exploded at her. Ricki looked down and the ground. She knew what was coming. She braced herself for the slap she was sure to receive. Tom's hand shot out and backhanded her across the side of her face. Ricki took a few steps back and put up hands up to protect herself. Not that it did much good. Tom was almost a foot taller than her and he outweighed her by at least 100 poundst. Plus he was a Navy SEAL. Tom grabbed her by the arm and jerked her up. "You stupid little slut. You don't leave me notes!" Tom yelled. He shoved her up against the wall and put a giant hand around her neck. He choked her until she almost passed out and then suddenly let her go. Ricki fell in a heap on the floor, gasping for air. Tom kicked her in the stomach and sent her flying backwards. As she lay on her back Tom came and stood over her. She saw him unbuckle his pants. "No!" she thought, "Please not that!" She tried to get away from him, but couldn't move fast enough. As she was crawling away, Tom took off his belt. She felt the hard leather hit her back. She stopped and tried to curl up in a ball. Tom hit her again with the belt. The thin shirt she had on over her bikini did nothing to cushion her back from the thick leather of the belt. Tom kicked her in the side to roll her over and continued to hit her with the belt. She hadn't cried yet because she knew that just made him angrier. He jerked her head up by her hair and punched her square in the face. He grabbed her by both arms and dragged her to the bedroom. He threw her on the bed and climbed on top of her. "No Tom, please don't" she whimpered. "Shut up bitch" he said as he slapped her across the face again. "You going to get what you deserve" he sneered. He put his hands around her throat again and squeezed. Ricki couldn't breath. She was gasping and clawing at Tom's hands. She closed her eyes and prayed for death to come quickly. _

"Ricki" she heard someone call. "Ricki, baby wake up. What's wrong?" Who was talking to her? Did she dare open her eyes? She cracked open one eyelid and saw Danny's concerned face leaning over her. She cried out and threw her arms around his neck. "Baby…shhh…it's ok" he said rubbing her back with one hand and soothing her hair with the other one. "I'm here…you're safe" he told her. "Oh Danny" she whispered, tears streaming down her face. "It was so real." "What was?" Danny asked. "The dream. It was the day Annie told me she was leaving." Ricki explained. "It was the last time Tom beat me" she finished quietly, ducking her head as if embarrassed. Danny gently lifted her chin so he could see her eyes. "It's ok now. Tom can't hurt you anymore." Danny wrapped his strong arms around her and held her until she quit shaking. He gently laid her back down and laid down beside her. This was the first time she'd had a nightmare. It scared him. It angered him to think of all the things that bastard did to her. He had caused her so much pain, both physically and mentally. Once he knew she was asleep, he quietly got out of bed and padded to the living room. He picked up his cell and called the one person who he knew he could talk to about this. "Hey Danny" Steve said as he answered the phone. "Do you always sound this chipper at 4:30 in the morning? Danny asked as he laughed. "No, but I figured you wanted or needed to talk and so I thought I would sound like I was already awake." Steve teased. Danny sighed. Steve knew him so well. "What's going on?" Steve asked seriously. "It's Ricki." Danny said quietly. "She had a nightmare about the last time Tom beat her. The day she came to you." Danny told him. Steve was quiet for a minute. Then he asked Danny "do you know what day it is?" Danny didn't so Steve explained. "It's been 20 years since her dad died." Steve told him. Danny was stunned. He'd had no idea. "But why would that cause nightmares about Tom?" Danny asked. Steve sighed. "Ricki relives all the pain in her life around this time every year. Last year, when she was staying with me, I don't think I slept for more than about 2 hours each night for a week because of her nightmares." Steve stopped for a minute. "Danny, have you asked her about this?" Danny cleared his throat. "Um, no…this is the first time it has happened." "Well, all I can say is to talk to her about it. She may want to talk about Uncle Jack, or she may not. Just let her tell you what she wants to talk about. But don't let her retreat into her shell. If you do, she may never come back out." Steve gently warned. "Ok, thanks man" Danny said gratefully. "I'll see you in a couple of hours." "Why don't you take the day off?" Steve suggested. "Ricki needs you right now, and we are ok without you for today." "Ok, sure." Danny agreed. "Thanks again." "Anytime Danny" Steve said as he hung up. Danny sat on the couch for a few more minutes forming a plan in his head. He was going to help Ricki through this day, and he knew just how to do it.


	6. Chapter 6

_****A quick note: Someone had suggested that I put more space in between the lines, ect so that it was easier to read...so I did! Sorry for that! I will continue to do this in future chapters. I think I am going to wrap this one up with the next chapter or two. Hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have enjoyed writing it! Thanks! ~SD :)****_

_****This was an emotional chaoter for me to write. I just lost my mom in August. I hope all of this chapter makes sense, and is somewhat acurate (you'll understand when you read it!)! Please read and review! I really appreciate any and all comments! Thanks! Love to you all ~SD ****_

Ricki rolled over and looked at the clock. 7:30 AM. She wondered why Danny hadn't woken her up when he got up to go to work. Then she realized the shower wasn't on. She got out of bed and pulled her robe on. She walked out of the bedroom of the small apartment and saw Danny dozing on the couch. She stopped and watched him for a few minutes. She knew she should wake him up before he was late for work, but she had a feeling that she was the reason he was there in the first place. It had been 20 years today since she had found her father dead of a massive heart attack in the kitchen of their home. She remembered that day so clearly as if it was yesterday…

_March 15, 1991_

"_Beware the ides of March" was the first thing that popped into Ricki's head when she woke up. They had been reading "Julius Ceasar" by Shakespeare in English Lit. She loved English Lit and she was good at it. She quickly got ready for school and headed downstairs. She noticed that it was awfully quiet downstairs. Usually her dad had come in from his morning swim and would be fixing breakfast by the time she came downstairs for school. _

_"Maybe he's still out swimming" she thought. _

_"Dad?" she called out. "Daddy?" she called again. _

_She walked into the kitchen and froze. Her father was laying face down on the floor. _

_"Daddy!" she screamed as she rushed over to him. _

_She fell to her knees and tried to roll the big man over. She couldn't get him to roll over. She was starting to panic. Her heart felt as if it would jump right out of her chest. She tried to feel for a pulse, but wasn't quite sure where to find it. The only thing she could think of was her Uncle John who lived next door. She ran out the door and stumbled through the sand screaming "Uncle John" the whole time. _

_John McGarrett met her at the back door. _

_"Ricki, what's wrong?" he asked. _

_"I can't get daddy to move!" she cried. _

_John flew out the door, and across the sand. His mind trying to convince himself that nothing was wrong with his baby brother, his only brother. John ran into the kitchen and crashed to his knees beside Jack. Ricki, Steve and Mary were right behind him. He turned Jack over and tried to find a heartbeat. He knew by the bluish tint on Jack's lips that he was already gone. _

_"Steve" he said quietly to his son, "take the girls back to our house." _

_Ricki ran to her father's side. _

_"NO!" she cried. _

_Her tears falling on the chest of the only parent she had. Her daddy couldn't be dead, he was supposed to live forever. She clung to his still form and cried. Steve took Mary back to their house and came back to try and get Ricki to go with him. John was on the phone with HPD. _

_"Come on Ricki, you don't need to be here." He told her. _

_She turned and looked into the face of her cousin. Steve didn't try and hide his tears. Ricki flung herself into Steve arms. He could feel her hot tears soaking the front of his shirt. He didn't care though. Steve held her as they both cried. Even though he was only 2 years older than she was, he felt so much older at that moment. He loved his cousin and just wanted to make all her pain go away. _

_He gently picked her small frame up and carried her out of the house. Ricki didn't protest. She clung to Steve and held on for dear life. He carried her into their house and straight into the living room. He sat down on the couch still holding her. She wasn't crying as hard now, but she still hadn't loosed her grip on Steve. Steve just rocked her back and forth and whispered words of comfort to her. Ricki slowly began to release Steve. He looked down at her flushed face. _

_"I need to call mom at the hospital. Will you be ok while I do that?" he asked her. _

_Ricki nodded slowly and climbed off of Steve's lap. Steve got up and called his mom at the hospital where she was a nurse. She had been working the overnight shift. Steve calmly told his mother what had happened. She told him she would be right there. _

_Ricki laid on the couch and listened to the sounds of the police cars coming, and all of the officers talking. One officer, Sgt. Jordan had known Jack and John for years. He came over to __talk to Ricki and get her statement about what happened. She stared blankly ahead as she told him how she had discovered her father's body. Steve held one of her hands while her Aunt Mary held the other one and had an arm around her shoulders. _

_Aunt Mary tried to get Ricki eat, but she refused. She felt sick to her stomach at even the thought of food. Finally her aunt gave up. She did give her a pill to take. _

_"It will help you sleep" she told her. Ricki reluctantly took it and within a half hour she was sound asleep. She slept until the next day. _

_The next few days were almost harder than that first day. __People everywhere, asking all kinds of questions that Ricki didn't have answers to. _

_What kind of service did she want to have? _

_What kind of flowers for the service? _

_Did she want flowers or did she want people to make donations somewhere? _

_What did she want her father buried in? _

_What picture did she want to use for the obituary. _

_She wanted to scream at everyone "I am only 12! How am I supposed to know all of this?" _

_Her Aunt Mary and Uncle John came to her rescue, and answered all of the questions she couldn't. _

_The day before the funeral she and Steve went back to her house to pick out what she wanted her father buried in. She had told Aunt Mary and Uncle John that she wanted to do that. _

_She slowly walked into her father's room and looked around. Everything was just as he had left it. Bed made, sheets folded and neat, just like the former military man he was, or had been. His watch and wallet were laid neatly on his dresser. His favorite picture of Ricki and her mother before she died was on the nightstand. Ricki walked into his closet. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked at his neatly hanging clothes. She gingerly touched his Navy uniform. Then she saw his favorite t-shirt. It said 'GO NAVY' and had an anchor on it. She pulled the shirt close to her face and breathed in his scent. She looked though his other clothes and decided that he should be buried in his Navy uniform. That was what she always remembered him wearing when they would go somewhere they had to dress up. _

_She turned and noticed Steve watching her closely. She tried to give him a smile, but could quite pull it off. Steve came close and pulled her into his arms. He had been her rock the last few days, and she was so thankful for him. _

_"Why did this happen, Steve?" she asked him through her tears. "Why was my daddy taken away from me? What did I do wrong?" _

_Steve felt his own tears slip down his cheeks. _

_"You didn't do anything wrong. This is NOT your fault" he told her. "I don't know why things like this happen. It's not fair." _

_Steve hugged her close once more then reached over and took his uncle's uniform from the closet bar. He took Ricki's hand and started to lead her from the room when she pulled away and went back into the closet. She came out with her father's 'GO NAVY' shirt. The two cousins walked back to the other house, both lost in their own thoughts. _

_The funeral service was pretty much a blur for Ricki. She honestly could not focus on what was being said. All she could do was stare at her father's open casket. Steve sat beside her and held her up when it was time to leave. _

_At the graveside service Ricki jumped everytime the rifles were fired. Steve stood like a pillar at her side. She barely notice when the members of the Honor Guard folded the flag that had been draped across her father's casket. When the Honor Guard presented her with the flag, she just looked at the man. It was Steve who told her to take the flag. She just looked at it like it was kind of foreign object..._

Ricki suddenly looked up. She saw Danny's beautiful blue eyes watching her intently. She tried to give him a smile. Danny stood up and wrapped his strong arms around her. She burst into tears.

"What can I do to make it better, baby?" he asked her quietly.

"Just hold me" she choked out.

A few hours later after a shower and some breakfast (well, some for Danny, Ricki wasn't hungry) Danny told Ricki he wanted to take her somewhere.

"Honey, I really don't want to go anywhere" she told him.

But Danny wouldn't take no for an answer. He told her that he would pick her up and carry her to the car if he had to. Ricki finally agreed, and they were soon in the Camaro. Ricki really wasn't paying attention to where they were going.

They pulled into a parking lot and Ricki noticed Steve's truck was there. She suddenly realized where they were. They were at the cemetery. Ricki slowly got out of the car.

Steve was standing next to his truck with a bouquet of flowers in his hands. Steve reached out and took her hand. They walked hand in hand to where both of their fathers were buried.

Danny walked slowly behind them. When they got to Jack McGarrett's grave, Ricki knelt down on the ground.

"Hi daddy" she said, tears already flowing down her face.

She traced the letters in the headstone with her finger. She brushed away a few pieces of grass.

"Oh daddy" she gasped, "I miss you so much."

Steve sat down beside her and put his arm around his cousins shoulders. Ricki laid her head on Steve's strong shoulder. Danny feeling a little helpless, came and sat down on the other side of his fiancé.

Ricki sniffed and wiped her eyes.

"Daddy, I want to meet Danny. He is my fiancé. He is the most amazing man in the world. I know you would love him."

Ricki looked up at Danny and saw the tears and love in his eyes. He put a hand on the headstone. He, for once, was at a loss for words. Ricki put her hand on Danny's.

"I know he would have approved of you and loved you as much as I do" Ricki told him.

Danny looked at the woman he loved more than anything. He looked back at the headstone, and said "I promise I will take care of her, sir."

The three of them sat for a little while longer, no one talking, all just thinking.

Steve was the first one to break the silence.

"I think we should get going" he told the other two.

Danny got up and then held out a hand to help Ricki up.

Ricki placed a hand to her lips and kissed them and then touched it to the headstone.

"Bye Daddy, I love you and miss you".

Danny felt fresh tears come to his eyes. Ricki took his hand and got up. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly.

"I love you baby" he whispered.

"I love you too" she said.

The trio walked to the cars. As they got to the Camaro, Steve pulled Ricki into a fierce hug.

"I love you cuz. I'm here if you need anything" he told her.

"Thanks Steven. I love you too" she said into his chest.

They both let go of the other and each got into their cars.

Danny asked her if she was hungry.

"Yeah, you know I am" she answered.

"How about we pick something up on the way home?" he asked.

"Sounds good to me" Ricki answered.

Once they got home and had eaten, Ricki asked Danny if he would hold her. Danny opened his arms and Ricki gladly went to him. She laid her head on his chest and thought about how lucky she was to have this man in her life. He didn't think she was crazy for talking to a stone.

"Danny?" she quietly called his name.

"Hmm" he answered.

"Please don't ever let me go" she whispered.

Danny felt her hot tears on his chest and raised her head to look into her eyes.

"I won't, I promise" he told her. He leaned his head down and gently kissed her. Ricki's eyes were closed as they parted. When she opened them, Danny saw passion and love written in her sky blue eyes. Ricki leaned up and kissed Danny passionately. Wanting to let him know how much she needed him.

"Ricki" Danny groaned as she kissed his neck.

Ricki moved until she was straddling Danny. She kissed him with all the passion she had inside. Danny responded in like. She was surprised when he suddenly pulled away.

"What?" she asked breathlessly.

"Are you sure this is what you want to do?" he asked her gently.

Ricki stood up. She held out her hand. Danny took it as he stood up off the couch. She turned and led him to the bedroom. She laid down on the bed and pulled Danny down with her. She looked up into his eyes.

"Yes, Danny. This is what I want" she told sincerely.

The love that they made was sweet and gentle.

As Ricki lay in Danny's arms afterwards, she thought again about how lucky she was to have this wonderful man in her life. She knew she was blessed. No matter what she had been through, or how much pain she had in her life, Danny was slowly mending her torn heart. For that, she would forever love him.


	7. Chapter 7

**_Ok...so I decided to continue this story and have a little fun with this chapter. Hope you like ti! I had fun writing it! Please review! I would really like to know what everyone who reads this thinks! Also, I am not done with my other story "Those baby blues". If you would like to read that one as well, please do! Anyway! Hope you all like this chapter! Love to you all! ~SD :)_**

"What the hell?" Ricki thought opening her eyes.

It took her a minute to focus, but once she did she slowly turned her head and looked over at Danny's sleeping form. That's when she heard the noise again. Her eyes widened with surprise when she realized what the noise that had woken her up was. Danny was snoring! And not just a little snore! It was a loud, deep snore. They had been together for almost a year, and she had never heard him snore before. Not even when he was exhausted.

She rolled over to face him and gently shook his shoulder.

"Danny" she whispered, "Danny, wake up. You're snoring."

"Hmm" Danny answered and promptly resumed snoring.

Ricki shook him a little harder.

"Danny, come on, wake up" she said louder this time.

"Wha?" Danny said groggily.

"You're snoring…loudly" Ricki told him.

"I don't snore" Danny said defensively.

"You wanna bet?" Ricki giggled seeing the frown and pout on Danny's face.

"It's just because I'm happy" he told her grinning.

"What is that like a cat purring? You snore because you are happy?" Ricki said openly laughing at the man in bed next to her.

"Yep" Danny said pulling Ricki close. "And it's all your fault"

"Oh, whatever" she laughed again.

Danny pulled her into a kiss, and not just any kiss. One that had them both gasping for air by the time they finally pulled away.

"What…was…that for?" Riki said attempting to catch her breath.

"Just…because" Danny answered.

Ricki started to say something but was cut off by the ringing of Danny's phone. He groaned as he reached to answer it.

"Yes, Steven?" he answered sounding annoyed. "Uh huh…yeah…ok…by the way, do you realize what time it is?"

Ricki didn't hear the response, but was pretty sure Steve was telling Danny he had already been up and around for a few hours.

Danny told Steve goodbye, and hung up the phone.

"Work?" Ricki asked.

"No, actually your crazy ass cousin is having a bar-b-que and invited us over."

"Cool" Ricki said excitedly, "I could use some surf time".

Danny rolled his eyes.

"And yes, you will be getting in the water" Ricki told him poking him in the ribs.

This action earned her a squirm, and a growl. Danny reached out and began to tickle Ricki's sides. She laughed and giggled, and begged him to stop. She finally got him to stop by hitting him with a pillow.

"Oh, so now you want to play dirty?" he teased picking up another pillow.

Ricki jumped up laughing and ran around the bed. Danny was right behind her. She got one good hit off before she felt Danny whack her with his pillow. She ran into the living room and then into the kitchen and tried to get away from him, giggling the whole way. Danny cornered her by the pantry. She dropped her pillow and put her hands up.

"Ok, I give" she giggled.

Danny dropped his pillow too and pressed close to her until her back was completely against the door of the pantry. He put one hand on either side of her head. He wasn't a tall man, but he was still taller than her 5'1' frame. He looked down at the smiling woman he loved so much.

"God, I want you so bad right now" he whispered to her.

Ricki smiled up at him.

"You'll have to catch me first" she said ducking under his arm, and running for the bedroom.

Danny growled and took off after her. Ricki jumped on the bed. Danny stopped at the foot of the bed and looked at her giggling like a school girl.

He slowly crawled up the bed to where Ricki was sitting. Ricki bit her bottom lip and watched as he slowly traced a finger down her arm. She shivered, but not from cold, from desire. She put her hands on Danny's face and pulled him into a kiss.

Danny pulled away and looked at her with eyes full of lust. His eyes roamed over her body scantly clad in a lacy tank and a pair of panties. He took in the fullness of her breasts and how they rose slightly with every breath she took. He noticed that her nipples were perking up at just a touch to her arm. He leaned forward and gently caught her bottom lip with his teeth and sucked ever so lightly.

Ricki's breath seemed to leave her when he did that.

Then she did something that totally surprised him. She took her tank and panties off and flung them on the floor. Normally she would let Danny take her clothes off, she wasn't really one to do it in front of him in full daylight. Danny had told her numerous times how beautiful her body was, but she still didn't feel completely comfortable with it. She doubted she ever would. But something in her made her do this for him this morning.

There she sat in all her nakedness for Danny to see, and enjoy.

Danny pulled his boxers off and revealed his hard cock. Ricki eyed his member with desire. But Danny had other plans.

He gently pulled her down to where she was laying beside him.

He ran his fingertips softly along her thigh. He then ran a hand up to her cup her breast. He leaned down and took her nipple into his mouth. He licked and sucked just enough to make Ricki squirm under his touch. With his mouth occupied with her breasts, his hand wandered down her stomach and then to her hip. He continued to swirl his tongue across her nipples making them perk up. Ricki whined slightly when his mouth left her breasts and kissed wet, hot, open mouth kisses down her stomach and onto the inner side of her thigh.

"Danny" she whispered, "God, Danny"

Danny slid his body down and settled in between her legs. He kissed the inside of each of her thighs.

She gasped at the first touch of his tongue to her womanhood. He swirled his tongue along her clit. Ricki gently grabbed two handfuls of Danny's blond hair. Danny darted his tongue in and out.

Ricki gasped again. She knew he could do amazing things with his tongue, but this was new. They had never done this before.

Ricki slightly lifted her hips wanting Danny's tongue deeper inside her. She couldn't believe how good this felt.

"Feels…good" she breathed.

Danny continued to swirl his tongue around. Then he sucked gently on her clit. That sent her over the edge.

"Danny, o god, Danny" she gasped pulling on his hair and lifting her hips.

Danny greedily sucked and licked through her orgasm.

Her body was breathless and limp. She was running her hands through his hair. Danny reluctantly left her womanhood and slid up to look into her eyes. Ricki smiled up at him, her eyes a little glassy.

"Wow" was all she could say.

"I thought you might like that" he whispered sexily.

"Danny, I…"

"Sshh" he told her.

He leaned down and kissed her soundly. She could taste herself on his lips. She felt his hands roaming over her body. She felt like she was on fire.

When Danny entered her, her breath left her all at once. It didn't matter that they had made love the night before, it was like the first time all over again. She lifted her hips and met him thrust for thrust. It didn't take long for both of them to reach the edge. Danny exploded into her with a sound that was almost animalistic. She called out his name as she reached that peak once again.

As they lay catching their breath, Ricki lazily ran her hands through Danny's hair again. Danny was trying to regain some sort of control of his breathing.

"God, Ricki, the things you do to me" he told her.

"Right back at 'cha babe" she smiled.

A few hours later they arrived at Steve's with beer, soda's, cole slaw, and Grace in tow. Ricki and Grace immediately changed into their swimsuits and headed to the beach. Danny and Steve followed at a leisurely pace. Danny had changed into a blue pair of board shorts that Ricki had bought him, and Steve was in a pair of black and yellow ones. Danny had actually taken his shirt off and seemed to be enjoying himself.

"Come on Daddy" Grace called to him.

"In a little bit" he told her.

Steve came out in the water to play with Grace, so Ricki went to sit on the beach with Danny. He watched her come up out of the water in her turquoise and black bikini.

"Lord, she's gorgeous" he thought to himself.

She took the towel he was holding out for her and dried off. Then she sat down on the blanket Danny was on and leaned over and kissed him.

"Hey sexy" she said.

"Hey yourself" he smiled at her.

She leaned against his chest and looked out at Steve and Grace playing in the shallow water. Steve was attempting to teach Grace how to use a boogie board, but wasn't having much success. They were mostly just splashing around and laughing.

Ricki noticed Danny was quiet.

"Hey, Jersey Boy, what are you thinking about?" she asked.

Danny thought for just minute before he spoke.

"What are we waiting for Ricki?" he asked.

"What are you talking about?" she asked turning to look him in the face.

"Why are we waiting to get married? Why don't we just do it? I want you as my wife, not just my fiancé. I want to marry you now. I want to start our life together, start our family" he told her hoping she wasn't going to laugh in his face.

Ricki's eyes grew wide. What were they waiting for? She didn't want a big wedding, and neither did he. They wanted just something simple, with their close friends and family. She took Danny's hand.

"I don't want to wait any longer. There is no reason to wait. I want to start our life together and our family too. I want to you to be my husband, and I want to be your wife" she said sincerely.

"Why don't we plan for next Saturday? I am pretty sure my parents can get here by then. So what do you say?"

"Yes…I say yes. I will talk to Kono when she gets here and we will get everything planned" Ricki said excitedly.

Danny grinned and pulled her close for a kiss.

They heard giggles, and a clearing of a throat in front of them. They broke the kiss reluctantly and looked at the two dripping people in front of them.

Grace was grinning from ear to ear and Steve was attempting a frown, but wasn't very convincing at it.

Danny and Ricki told them of their plans, and they were both thrilled.

"Do I get to come?" Grace asked.

"Of course" Ricki assured the little girl, "you have to be there so you can be the flower girl".

Grace giggled and hugged both Ricki and her father at the same time.

Danny cleared his throat and looked at Steve.

"Will you be my best man? You're my partner, and friend, and I would really like for you to stand up with me" he told Steve hopefully.

Steve's eyes misted just a little.

"I would be honored to be your best man, on one condition" Steve told him.

"What?"

"I get to walk Ricki down the aisle first" he told him.

Tears gathered in Ricki's eyes as she looked at her cousin.

"I wouldn't have it any other way" Danny told him.

Ricki looked up at Steve.

"Steve, can we have it here? It would just be a small thing, nothing fancy, or big, just a few friends and some family." Ricki pleaded with her cousin.

Steve looked at the pleading look on Ricki's face. He could never deny her anything she wanted, her or Mary. He had never been able to.

"I think that would be ok" he told her belying his true feelings.

Ricki threw her arms around him and hugged him tight.

"Thanks cuz" she said choking back tears.

"You're welcome" he said hugging her back.

When Chin and Kono got to the house, Grace was bursting at the seams to tell someone the good news. The three adults let her tell Chin and Kono about the wedding plans. Kono squealed and hugged both Danny and Ricki, and Chin gave Danny a "bro hug" and then hugged Ricki and kissed her cheek.

The men then went to start the grill and get the food started. Kono, Ricki and Grace all went into the kitchen and started writing down plans.

Danny slipped away for a few minutes and called his parents. His mom was ecstatic and his dad just said "about time, son". They told him they would book their flights and be there as soon as they could.

Danny went back and found Ricki walking alone on the beach. He caught up to her and put an arm around her slim waist.

She turned into his chest and just let him hold her. She was so excited to finally get to marry the man she loved. She also knew this next week was going to be busy, and she wanted to cherish this small moment with just her and Danny. She looked up at him and smiled.

"I love you Jersey Boy."

"I love you, too, baby."

They stood taking in the beautiful surroundings, just happy to be near the person they loved more than anything.


	8. Chapter 8

**_**Just a quick note...Thanks to all who have read and reviewed and /or added! I appreciate it! I know this one is long, but I had alot I wanted to "say". Hope you like it! Let me know what you think! Thanks and love to you all! ~SD :)_**

The morning of Ricki and Danny's wedding dawned bright and warm. Ricki was excited and nervous all at the same time. She had stayed the night before the wedding at Steve's, having a sleepover with Grace and Kono. They had done their finger and toe nails, and laughed and ate pizza and popcorn. Steve had decided early in the evening to go to Danny's and attempt to get some sleep, especially after Grace had asked him if he wanted her to paint his toenails too. He politely told her no and said that three giggling girls was driving him crazy. The girls just laughed at him, the two older ones knowing that he just didn't like being the only man around.

Ricki awoke that morning to the sound of her phone ringing. She picked it up and saw Danny's smiling face on the screen.

"Hi" she said sleep still thick in her voice.

"Hey beautiful" Danny greeted her. "I just wanted to start my day by hearing your voice" he told her.

"It's a great way to wake up" she said smiling and stretching.

"Exactly 4 hours, and 24 minutes until we are officially married" he said.

"Oh, lord, you've been hanging around Steven too long" she groaned.

Danny just laughed.

"Well, I will let you go so you can get ready. I love you Ricki"

"I love you too Danny. And I can't wait to marry you" she told him sincerely.

They hung up and Ricki went to wake Kono and Grace up. She was presently surprised to find them already up and in the kitchen with Danny's parents. Janice and Ben had arrived on Thursday, and had been a huge help in getting everything together. Janice was standing at Steve's stove cooking breakfast, while Ben was sitting at the table with Grace, listening to his granddaughter tell him all about surfing. Watching his reaction, Ricki seemed to think that maybe this is where Danny got his aversion to water, from his father. Ben wasn't too keen on the whole 'beach wedding' idea, and had asked if they really wanted to get married so close to the water. They both assured him that they did, and he let it go, but it was clear he didn't like the water.

"Ricki" Grace exclaimed as soon as she saw her standing in the doorway.

"Good morning Grace" she said to the little girl, giving her a hug.

"Want some breakfast?" Janice asked her.

"Sure, sounds good" Ricki said sitting down next to her soon-to-be father-in-law.

They all sat around the table and ate, Grace doing most of the talking.

Ricki looked up and realized they needed to get a move on if they wanted to be ready in time. Kono took Grace into the downstairs bathroom and helped her wash her hair and get dressed while Ricki went upstairs and showered.

A little while later, Kono knocked on Steve's bedroom door, where Ricki was getting ready. Ricki told her to come in.

"Oh my goodness" Kono gasped when she saw Ricki.

Ricki was in a long lacey white strapless dress that "swished" when she walked. Her long curly brown hair was partly pulled up, with the rest flowing in long curls down her back. She had a pink hibiscus flower tucked into her hair right above right ear. She also wore a pink and white lei made up beautiful orchids.

"Do I look ok?" she nervously asked Kono.

"You look amazing" Kono told her smiling. "I just came up to tell you that Danny and Steve just got here. All we are waiting on is Chin, and Governor Jameson. Steve wants to come up. Is that ok?"

Ricki smiled at her friend.

"Yeah, I'd like to see him" she told her.

Steve came in a few minutes later and stared at his cousin.

"You look so much like your mom" he told her quietly.

Ricki looked at him with a confused look.

He walked over to his closet and went in. He came back out with a gift in his hand.

"I was going to wait until after the wedding, but I want you to have this now" he told her handing her the gift.

She took it from him and painstakingly took off the paper. She gasped when she saw what was under the paper.

Steve had found a picture of Ricki's parents on their wedding day and had it blown up and framed. Ricki looked at Steve with tears in her eyes.

"How…where did you find this?" she finally managed.

"It was in some of my dad's stuff. I thought you might like it" he told her.

"Oh, Steven" she choked out.

Steve pulled her into a fierce hug. She pulled away telling him he was going to crush her lei. Kono chose that moment to knock on the door and tell them that everyone was here, and ready to get started. Steve took her arm and led her down the stairs.

Danny stood anxiously on the beach waiting for his bride to walk towards him. He looked out at the people that meant the most in his and Ricki's lives. There was his mom and dad, Chin, Governor Jameson, Kamekona, Amy (Mekah's widow) and her son, Billy, and Sarah (Ricki's friend from work). It was a small affair, but it felt perfect to him. The music began and he watched as his beautiful daughter made her way down the little aisle they had made on the beach. She was the picture of innocence and excitement. She wore a light pink dress with a pink and white lei, much like the one Ricki was wearing. She wore white flip flops that showed off her cute little hot pink toenails. She held her little basket of flowers tightly as she slowly walked toward her father. He grinned at her and bent down to give her a hug. She hugged him and then moved to stand by her grandparents.

Kono came next as the maid of honor. She wore a dark pink dress with a pink and white lei. She also wore a pink haku lei on her head. She was also wearing flip flops and her toes her also hot pink. She smiled and kissed Danny's cheek as she took her place across from him and waited for Ricki and Steve.

Steve looked at Ricki with tears in his eyes.

"You ready for this?" he asked her.

"Yeah, I am" she told him looking up at him.

He saw the tears in her eyes.

"They are looking down on you, ya know" he said quietly.

She smiled as a tear ran down her cheek.

"I know. I just wish they could actually be here" she said her voice breaking.

She shook her head, and wiped her cheek. She was going to marry the man she loved and she was not going to be a blubbering mess when she saw him.

"Let's go" she told Steve pulling on his arm.

Ricki and Steve stepped out of the house, and everyone stood and turned around.

Ricki's eyes grew wide when she saw Danny standing at the end of the aisle. He was in white pants and a dark blue shirt. The color of his shirt made his eyes even bluer than they already were. She giggled when she saw that he was barefoot. She hadn't thought he was going to actually do it.

Danny drew in a deep breath as he saw Ricki for the first time. She looked so beautiful. He looked down and saw that she too was barefoot. He caught sight of her toes and was surprised by the color on her toenails. Kono and Grace's were both hot pink, but Ricki's were a dark blue. It was extremely sexy to him and he wasn't sure why. He looked into her eyes and saw so much love in them. As Ricki and Steve reached him, Steve protectively stood in between the couple. The justice of the peace began the ceremony with "we are gathered here today to witness the marriage of Richelle McGarrett and Daniel Williams. Who gives this woman in marriage?"

Steve straightened his shoulder's and looked at the J.P.

"Her ohana."  
He leaned and kissed Ricki's cheek and then turned and shook Danny's hand. He then took his place beside Danny.

The ceremony then continued. Ricki recited her vows with tears streaming down her face. Danny's voice broke several times during his vows. A single tear slid down his cheek as he slid the ring on her finger and vowed his undying love to her and her alone. Ricki could barely get the words out when she slid the ring on Danny's finger and vowed her undying love to him and him alone. When the J.P. pronounced them man and wife, Danny kissed his new wife with so much passion and love it literally and figuratively took Ricki's breath away.

The reception consisted of lunch being grilled by Steve, Ben and Chin. Kono and Janice had managed to get the couple a beautiful cake, and of course there was beer and soda's for everyone. After everyone had eaten and cake had been cut and served, Ben stood up and asked everyone if he could have their attention.

"Now, you all know that this was put together very quickly, and that Ricki and Danny have said that they are not going to go on a honeymoon until later. Well, Ricki and Danny, we have a little surprise for you."

Janice stood up and walked over to the couple and handed Danny an envelope.

Danny looked at his mom curiously.

"Open it" she told him softly.

Danny opened the envelope and pulled out the paper inside. He and Ricki read what was written on the paper. They both looked at each other and then at their guests in awe.

Everyone jut smiled back at them.

"Read it out loud, Daddy" Grace pleaded.

Danny cleared his throat.

"Well," he started, his voice thick with emotion, "it says that Ricki and I are to be at Dillingham Airfield at 2000 hours, that's 8 pm, to fly to Maui, where we are going to stay at the Grand Wailea Resort for the next three nights."

Ricki looked at Steve.

"Did you do this?" she asked him.

"We all did. We thought you both deserved some time alone and some time off" he told them.

"But I have to work on Monday" Ricki protested.

Sarah grinned at her friend and fellow nurse.

"It's all taken care of. Me and another nurse are going to cover your shifts."

Ricki looked at Danny with tears in her eyes.

"Well, I guess we had better pack" she said smiling at her husband.

"Thank you all. I don't know what else to say other than thanks" Danny said looking at all their friends and family.

Janice wiped at her eyes and gave her son a hug. She cupped his face with her hands and looked straight into his eyes.

"You deserve this, you have _earned_ this. Enjoy it, son."

She then turned to Ricki and hugged her new daughter-in-law.

"You have earned this too. I know what it is like having to put up with Danny. You are a wonderful woman, and I am proud to call you my daughter."

Tears were now running down Ricki's face as she hugged Janice again.

"Thanks, mom" she said.

Janice pulled back and gave her a watery smile.

"You two better get packing" Ben told the couple.

The next 20 minutes were spent giving hugs and telling everyone thank you one last time.

As they all walked outside Danny froze on the porch. Ricki looked to where he was looking. Her mouth dropped open.

Someone had decorated the Camaro! There was a sign on the back that said "Just Married", but that wasn't the shocking part. There were "balloons" attached to the car. Only they weren't balloons. They were condoms. Someone had blown up condoms and put them on the car.

Danny turned around and glared at Steve.

"Hey, it wasn't me" Steve laughed holding his hands up in a mock surrender.

Danny then turned his glare on Chin.

"Nope, not me either" Chin told him.

The only person left to glare at was Kono. She had to be the one who did it.

As Danny and Ricki both looked at her, she was trying very hard to keep from smiling.

"Kono!" Danny exclaimed.

"Sorry guys! I couldn't resist" she told them laughing.

Danny face turned red as he saw his mom and dad holding their hands to their mouths trying to keep from laughing.

Ricki looked at Danny and laughed.

"Come on Danny! What else do newly weds do on their wedding night?" she said grinning at him.

Danny just laughed and shook his head.

"What are you all laughing at?" Grace demanded.

"Nothing sweetheart. Just something you will understand when you are older…much older" Danny told her.

Ricki and Danny walked to the car to a chorus of goodbyes. Danny opened Rickis door for her to get in. Sitting in her seat was a box wrapped in white paper. There was a note on it that said "Do not open until you get to the hotel". Ricki was very curious as to what it was.

As Danny opened his car door, he groaned.

Sitting on the steering wheel was a full box of condoms with a note that said "Have fun".

Once they got to the hotel and to their room, Ricki was dying to open the box.

"Is this from you?" she asked Danny.

"No, I haven't given you my gift yet" he said.

"I wonder who this is from?" she said tearing off the paper and opening the box.

"Woah" they both said as they saw what was in the box.

Ricki picked up the skimpiest piece of lingerie she had ever seen. There wasn't much to it. It was completely see through and lace. Underneath Ricki found a matching g-string.

Danny whistled.

"I can't wait to see you in that" he said kissing her neck.

Ricki looked in the box one more time and saw a small envelope in the bottom. She opened and read what was written on the card.

_Enjoy your wedding night. Love, Kono, Sarah, and Mom._

Ricki smiled and turned to Danny.

"You really want to see me in this?" she asked sexily.

"Oh yeah" he said breathlessly.

"I'll be right back" she said giving him a quick kiss and heading off to the bathroom.

Danny quickly took off his clothes, all but his boxers. He then pulled out a small black velvet box and put on the night stand. He pulled the covers of the bed back and got in.

Ricki walked out of the bathroom and all Danny could do was stare. God, his wife was beautiful. He felt as if he was the luckiest man in the whole world.

"You are so beautiful" he told her huskily.

Ricki crossed the room and crawled up on the bed with Danny.

She looked into his eyes.

"I love you Danny. I am so glad that I am finally your wife."

Danny cupped her cheek in his hand.

"I love you so much Ricki. You have made me that happiest man in the world. You showed me I could love again. You are everything to me. I am so proud to be your husband."

Ricki looked at Danny.

"I want to make love to my husband" she told him softly.

Danny smiled and gently laid her down. He made love to his wife several times that night. He didn't think he could ever get enough of her. He was so in love with this woman, and she was his and only his. That feeling in this moment was all he ever needed to let go of all the bad. He knew that he had found "the one" for him.

As he watched her quietly sleep after making love for the third time he thought of how she had healed his broken heart, and he had healed hers. He felt whole again. Ricki had done that for him. He knew then and there that he was indeed the luckiest man in the world.


	9. Chapter 9

**_**OK...this is a little in the future, but I wanted to write this! Hope you all like it! Oh- and I am in no way a medical professional (yet), but I tried to make it somewhat acurate based on my own experience. Let me know what you think! Love to you all! ~Rachael (Saphire Dancer)_**

Chapter 9:

6 months after wedding…

Ricki stared at the doctor like he had grown two heads.

"Excuse me?" she asked incredulously.

The doctor cleared his throat and smiled gently at his patient.

"I said you aren't sick, you're pregnant" he told her again.

Ricki was in total shock! The last few days she had been miserable. She had been nauseous all day for the last three days. She had stayed home from work thinking she was coming down with a stomach bug. All she had done at home was sleep mostly, and try to keep from throwing up. Danny had been worried about her so he convinced her to go to the doctor.

The doctor talking again brought her back to the present.

"When did you say was your last menstrual cycle?" he asked her.

"Um, a few months ago. I do that sometimes. I've never been real regular" she said.

"OK, I am ordering an ultrasound for today so we can see how far along you are. You seem very surprised. Were you and your husband trying to get pregnant?"

"No, we weren't exactly trying, but we weren't preventing it either. We figured it would happen when the time was right."

"Well it looks like the time is now. The nurse will be in a few minutes to let you know about the ultrasound. Congratulations."

"Thanks."

Ricki stared at the door the doctor walked out of. She was pregnant! She couldn't stop her hand from coming to rest on her still flat tummy and smiling as she thought of what was growing inside her. Danny was…Danny! How was she going to tell him? What would he say?

She didn't have time to figure out an answer to those questions because the nurse came in and told her to follow her down the hall to another room. In this room they had an ultrasound machine set up. The nurse told her to pull her shirt up and lay down on the table.

"Ok, this may be a little cold" the nurse said squirting the gel on her stomach.

As the nurse moved the wand around the gel started to warm up.

Ricki looked over at the ultrasound screen. She knew how to read one because, after all, she was a Labor and Delivery nurse.

The nurse located the sack and what Ricki saw brought tears to her eyes. There in the middle of the sack was a little peanut shape.

"This little fella's got a strong heartbeat" the nurse said smiling.

The nurse frowned and moved the wand around some more. She suddenly gasped.

"What? What's wrong?" Ricki asked trying to sit up.

"Nothing" the nurse told her, "it's just that…well, there are two heartbeats, and two sacks."

Two heartbeats…two sacks…Ricki's eyes grew wide.

"Oh my god" she whispered.

"Yep, you are going to have not only one baby, but two" the nurse said happily.

Ricki grinned.

"Can I get a copy of that?" Ricki asked pointing at the screen.

"Of course" the nurse said. "In fact lets do this…"

The nurse typed a few buttons and the words "Hi Daddy" popped up above each of the fetuses.

When Ricki got home, she was so nervous she couldn't sit still. Danny had wanted her to call after her appointment and because it had taken so long, he had already called her cell twice. It was almost time for him to be home anyway, so she decided to text him that she was home, and would talk to him when he got home. She got busy putting together a nice romantic dinner complete with candles. She had a special way she wanted to tell Danny about the baby…babies, and she had some work to do to be able to pull it off.

She fixed Danny a dinner of grilled chicken, a baked potato, and a green salad. She honestly wasn't that hungry, so she fixed herself a salad.

When Danny walked in the door he was surprised to see his wife in a slinky black dress and heels.

"Did I forget something?" he asked her.

"No, I just wanted to fix a nice romantic dinner for you" Ricki told him smiling.

Danny walked over to her and put his arms around her.

"I missed you today" he said quietly.

"I missed you too" she said tilting her head up for him.

Danny lowered his head and kissed her. It was a passionate kiss, full of love and desire.

Ricki pulled away first.

"Dinner's getting cold" she told him smiling at him.

They sat down to eat, and right away Danny noticed she wasn't really eating.

"So, what did the doctor say?" he asked casually.

"We'll talk about it after dinner. Want a beer?" she said getting up and getting him a beer from the fridge.

Danny frowned knowing she was avoiding the subject. He decided to let it go for now.

They talked about Danny's day, and about the case the Five-0 team was working on. Finally Danny couldn't stand it anymore.

"Ricki, you are scaring me. What happened at the doctor's?" he said looking at her with concern and love.

Ricki stood up and put her hand out for him to take. She led him into the bedroom. She had him sit down on the bed and she walked over to the dresser and picked up a card. She sat down next to Danny on the bed and handed him the card.

"What's this?"

"Just open it."

Danny opened the envelope and pulled out a cream colored card. Ricki had written on the front of it "To the most amazing husband, and father".

Danny opened the card and saw the ultrasound picture.

"Where did you find this? I thought Rachel had all of Grace's ultrasound pictures" he said.

Ricki rolled her eyes.

"Read the top of the picture" she said patiently.

Danny looked at the top of the picture. It said:

"_Williams, Richelle _

_Dr. Charles _

_10-08-11" _

Danny looked up at Ricki in surprise. Then he looked back down at the ultrasound. That's when he noticed that the picture said "Hi Daddy".

"We're…we're…going to have a baby?" he stuttered.

Ricki nodded with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face.

Danny threw his arms around his wife and hugged her fiercely.

When he pulled back Ricki noticed tears in his eyes. He was looking at the picture again and grinning like a fool.

"Why does it say 'Hi Daddy' twice?" he asked looking up at Ricki.

Ricki just smiled at him.

It suddenly dawned on him.

"Twins?" he croaked.

"Yep! Twins!" Ricki said happily.

Danny felt like his heart was going to burst. Not only was he going to have a baby with the woman he loved more than anything, but they were going to have twins!

Danny reached up and took Ricki's face in his hands and pulled her towards him. He captured her lips in a sweet gentle kiss. He then crawled up the bed to the pillows and pulled Ricki with him. Ricki laid down next to her husband and laid her head on his chest.

Danny put his hand on her tummy. He kissed the top of her head and shifted so he could look her in the eye.

"You have no idea how happy I am. I love you so much Ricki."

Ricki's eyes filled with tears again.

"I love you too Danny. I'm happy too, and I'm happy that you're happy. I was a little worried about how you would take the news."

"Why?"

"Well, we've only been married a little over 6 months, and we weren't really trying, and…"

Danny stopped her by placing a firm kiss on her lips.

"I want to have a family with you, and that means having babies. I'm not getting any younger and Grace is growing up so fast. I think the timing is perfect."

Ricki's heart was so filled with love and admiration for this man. He was the most amazing man, husband, lover and father in the world, probably the universe. At least in her humble opinion.

"So, how far along are you?" Danny asked.

"14 weeks. Almost 4 months."

"So that makes you due…" Danny said trying to mentally calculate her due date.

"March 12th" she supplied.

Danny looked at her in surprise.

"Don't say it, I've already thought it" she said holding up her hand.

She knew he was thinking about the date. March 15th had been the day her father had died, and her due date was only a few days before that.

Danny pulled her close again and just held her.

Ricki looked up at him.

"I'm ok ya know. I think maybe it's kind of a sign. Like my dad is saying that that time of year should be celebrated now instead of mourned."

"You amaze me" Danny told her.

"Why?" she asked

"You just do. I would have never even come up with that line of thinking. You are just amazing."

"Thank you. I think you are pretty amazing yourself" she said kissing him once again.

They spent the rest of the evening laying on the bed talking.

**********************H50********************************H50***********

January, 2012

Danny had taken the day off to be with her.

Today was Ricki's ultrasound to find out what they were having. They had decided that since they were having twins that they should probably find out what sex the babies were.

The nurse walked in and got Ricki ready. The gel was cold at first and then started to warm up as the nurse moved the wand around.

"Everything looks good" she said after a few minutes. "I am seeing everything I am supposed to. Hearts both look good and strong. Do you want to know the sex?"

"Yes" Ricki and Danny answered at the same time.

The nurse turned the screen around for them to see. She moved the wand around Ricki's stomach.

"Ok…baby number one…this one is a…boy. You have at least one boy" the nurse told them.

Danny squeezed Ricki's hand.

"Ok…and baby number two is…another boy. You are having twin boys."

Danny looked down at Ricki with tears in his eyes.

He leaned down and kissed her.

"Boys, we're going to have boys" he whispered.

Ricki just grinned as the tears in her eyes spilled over.

The nurse printed out a few pictures for the soon-to-be new parents and cleaned Ricki up.

When the nurse left the room, Danny pulled Ricki close to him.

"I can't believe I am going to have a son, and not just one, but two! Wow! I am in shock!"

He leaned down and kissed her again.

"I love you Danny" Ricki told him when they broke the kiss.

"I love you too" he told her taking her hand.

They walked out of the doctor's office hand in hand with huge smiles on their faces.

**_**OK...now that they are having boys, I need some name ideas! Send my way and I will decide sometime this weekend! Thanks! ~R :)_**


	10. Chapter 10

**_**Sadly this story must come to an end. I have a couple of other ideas rolling around, so I will still be writing! There will be one more chapter after this one, and it will be like an epiloge. Just an idea I have and want to write it. I hope you have all enjoyed this story. Thanks so much for reading! Love to you all! ~Rachael (Saphire Dancer) :)**_**

March 15, 2012:

Danny had tried to stay home from work, but Ricki was not having it. He had made her promise that she wouldn't go to the cemetery until he got home. She wanted to tell him that even if she wanted to go to the cemetery, she probably wouldn't be able to walk all the way to the grave. Danny also made her promise to call him if anything happened. She was annoyed at him being so paranoid, but then again she was 3 days over due with twins!

Danny was sitting at his desk that afternoon, doing paperwork after spending the morning running after 2 drug lords who had decided to make Oahu their new territory. He was having trouble keeping his eyes open. Ricki had been having trouble sleeping lately and in turn he had too. If she was up, he was up. That was just how it worked. He couldn't sleep if she wasn't in bed.

He looked down at the form he was filling out and realized he had spelled his own name wrong. _That_ is how tired he was! He tore up the form and pulled out another one and started over. He decided to get some coffee and was getting up out of his chair when his cell phone started ringing. A picture of Ricki standing sideways so you could see her pregnant belly popped up on the screen. He answered it immediately.

"Hey beautiful! You ok?" he asked.

The only answer he got was some heavy breathing and a small whimper on the other end.

"Ricki…Ricki what's going on? What's wrong?" he asked raising his voice slightly.

His heart was pounding. He stood frozen, standing next to his desk. Then he finally heard a small voice say,

"Danny".

"Ricki, baby, what's wrong? Is it time?"

The panting continued as Ricki answered breathlessly.

"Yes…Danny…it's time. My water…just broke and…and I'm…having contractions…hard ones."

That made Danny's feet move. He grabbed his keys and hurried out of his office.

"I am on my way babe. Be there in 10" he told her. "Do you need me to stay on the phone with you?"

"No…I'll be ok. Just please hurry" she told him catching hr breath.

Danny was scared. Hearing Ricki sound so scared and helpless made his heart hurt. All he could thing of was that he had to get to her to make sure she was ok.

Steve had seen Danny run out of his office on his phone and knew he was talking to Ricki. He ran after Danny and stopped him in the parking lot.

"Danny" he called.

Danny turned around and looked at Steve and Steve knew.

"I'll meet you at the hospital. I just need to take care of a few things" Steve told his friend.

Danny nodded and jumped in the Camaro and peeled out of the parking lot, lights and siren going.

Ricki was waiting for him when he reached the house they had moved into after they found out they were having twins.

It wasn't a large house and it certainly wasn't new. It had 3 bedrooms, one for them, one for Grace, and one for the twins. It had needed a lot of work. They had managed to get a loan for it. It really wasn't much more than they had been paying for their tiny apartment.

Danny, Steve and Chin had scraped and painted and repaired everything they could do on their own. They had gotten a good deal on some new carpet and Chin had a friend who put it in for them.

Danny and Steve had painted Grace's room a light purple, a color she picked out, with white trim.

They had painted Ricki and Danny's room and light, green. It was very calming. At least that's what Ricki had said.

The twin's room was painted in baby blue with yellow, and soft green accents. The men had managed to get along until it came to putting the cribs together. Ricki just rolled her eyes and let them argue. Danny needed someone to vent to, and if Steve was that person for now, she didn't mind. She brought them both a beer and they seemed to calm down after that.

Ricki watched as Danny pulled into the driveway at a high speed and wondered if he was going to fly right through the garage. He did stop the car in time, thankfully. He jumped out and ran up to the door.

"Ricki?" he called as he came through the front door.

"In here" she called from the kitchen.

Danny ran around the corner to the kitchen and stared at his wife. She looked miserable. She had a death grip on the counter with one hand and her other hand was on her stomach. Her face was scrunched up in pain and she was panting through the contraction. Danny noticed that she already had her bag at her feet and the keys to her car were on the counter next to her hand.

Another change they had made when they found out she was having twins was to get a bigger car. They had taken Ricki's beat up old blue sedan and traded it in on a used Chevy Tahoe. Ricki had gotten so big that she couldn't even get into the Camaro.

Danny grabbed her keys and her bag. He put a hand on her back and started to lead her out the door. Ricki looked up at him with tears in her blue eyes. She looked terrified. His heart broke seeing her look like that. He stopped and put his arms around her and gently kissed her.

"Everything will be alright. I promise" he told her softly.

Ricki nodded. They slowly made their way to the truck and Danny helped her get in. As soon as she got in another contraction hit. Danny held her hand and coached her though it. Once it was over he jumped in the driver's seat and sped towards the hospital.

Twenty-seven exhausting and labor intensive hours later, Danny cried as the first one of his sons was born. Two and a half minutes later, his second one was born. He cut the cord with each one, just as he had done with Grace. He watched the nurses like a hawk as they took them to clean them up. The nurse wrapped one of the babies up in a blanket and handed him to Danny. She wrapped the other one up and carried him over to Ricki. As she handed him to her, Ricki burst into tears.

"Hey, babe, what's wrong?" Danny asked concerned.

"I just can't believe I am a mom" Ricki said with tears running down her face.

She looked at the little bundle in her arms as her heart swelled with love. She took in the tiny little fingers, his nose and his cute little toes. She gently kissed his little forehead. Danny watched her do this and he felt the tears come again. He leaned down and held his other son for her to see. The nurse took the one baby from Ricki and held him until Danny could pass the other baby to his wife. She did the same thing as she did with the first one. This tiny little baby was her and Danny's son. They both were. They had made these beautiful babies out of love.

Danny looked the baby in his arms. He felt immediately protective of them. He knew he would do anything to protect them. And just like with Grace, his loved these babies so much he would die for them if he had to.

Once the nurses had cleaned Ricki up and moved her to her room, they allowed a few visitors to come in and see the babies. It was late, but Grace and Steve had waited patiently, well Grace had at least. Danny had been scared Steve would pace a hole in the floor, or punch something. Neither of which he wanted.

Grace and Steve walked slowly into Ricki's room. Ricki was sitting up in bed holding one of the babies and Danny was sitting in a chair beside the bed holding the other one. They both looked exhausted but extremely happy. Grace grinned as she saw the babies. She ran over to her father and looked down at the baby in his arms.

"Oh, he is so cute and tiny" she said smiling.

Steve looked ready to run at any minute.

"Steven, come meet your 'nephews'" Ricki said gently.

Steve looked uncertain but walked over to his cousin, who he thought of more like his sister.

She handed him the tiny bundle. He looked down at the baby and his heart filled with love and a fierce feeling of protection, much like Danny's.

"What's his name?" Steve asked.

"This one is Benjamin Meka Williams" she said proudly.

"What's this one's name?" Grace asked.

"This one is Jackson Makani Williams" Danny told his young daughter.

"Jackson?" Steve asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, after my father" Ricki said with tears in her eyes.

Steve nodded and looked down at the sleeping newborn in his arms.

"Benjamin Meka, and Jackson Makani" he said softly. He liked them. They were a good mix of both Danny and Ricki.

Danny stood up and let Grace sit down to hold her new baby brother. After a few minutes, Steve realized he needed to get Grace home because it was getting very late.

They said goodbye with promises to be back tomorrow.

A little while after they left the nurse came in to get the babies. Ricki had opted to let the nursery take care of them for the first night so she could rest.

When they finally had a moment to themselves Danny leaned in and kissed his wife.

"I love you, and I am so proud of you" he told her sweetly.

Ricki smiled sleepily up at her husband.

"I love you too."

He sat down on the bed and pulled her close. She laid her head on his chest and promptly fell sound asleep.

Danny was exhausted himself and settled down and held his wife while she slept. His mind was running. He thought about how so much had happened since he and Ricki had met. He wouldn't change a bit of it. He loved this woman so much. She had helped heal his heart, made him love again. He had done the same for her. They were a perfect fit. He was so proud of her. She had been a real trooper through out her entire labor and then delivery. And now, they had twin sons. He knew the road ahead would be bumpy. After all, he was a boy once himself. But he knew he and Ricki could make it through anything. That's just how strong their love was.

Danny kissed the top of Ricki's head and closed his eyes. He smiled as he drifted off to sleep. This Jersey boy finally had everything he had ever wanted.


	11. Chapter 11

Epilogue:

Five years later…

Ricki watches from the stands as the small blond headed boy walks up to home plate. He looks at his coach and readies his bat. He swings with all his little five year old might. She watches as his bat connects with the ball on the t-ball stand.

"Run Benji, run!" Ricki cheers for her son.

Benjamin "Benji" Meka Williams, the spitting image of his father, made it all the way to second base.

Ricki watched again as another little blond headed boy walked up to the plate. He also looked at his coach and readies his bat. But then he put his bat down and turned towards the stands and starts waving frantically. Ricki looks around to see what he is waving at and sees Steve coming up the stands.

Jackson "Jax" Makani Williams loved his Uncle Steve. Jax much to Danny's chagrin, wanted to be just like his Uncle Steve. Steve was just as enamored with Jax. Benji loved his Uncle Steve too, but wasn't into the "ninja" stuff like Jax was. Benji wanted to be a cop, just like his daddy.

The coach ran out from the dugout and worked on getting Jax attention back on the game. Ricki smiled thinking of how much Jax reminded her of Danny. Not only was he also the spitting image of his father, he had the same argumentative personality. Benji was a little more reserved. He tended to think about what he was going to say rather than just opening his mouth and letting it fly.

Steve sat down beside Ricki.

"How are they doing?" he asked.

"Good. They are ahead by two points" she told him.

"How are you doing?" he asked looking down at her pointedly.

Ricki smiled and rubbed a hand over her very pregnant belly.

"I am fine. Just tired" she told him.

She was due any day now, and wasn't really supposed to be out. But she couldn't miss her boy's t-ball game. Especially since they had such a good looking coach!

Jax attention was finally back on the game and his coach turned around. Danny caught Ricki's eye as he jogged back to the dugout. He flashed her a sexy smile. She gave him a little wave.

Jax swung and made contact with the ball. He hit it hard and it flew out to the outfield. He took off running. Danny was out of the dugout in a flash cheering and jumping up and down. Benji rounded third and made a beeline for home plate. Jax ran as fast as his little legs would carry him. He rounded second and then third. He headed for home plate.

Ricki and Steve were cheering from the satnds.

"Go Jax! Go baby" Ricki cheered for her young son.

He was just about to home plate when he saw the ball being thrown to one of the players on the other team. He tucked his right leg in and gracefully slid into home.

Both boys were ecstatic!

Danny ran and pulled both boys into a big bear hug. He was so proud of his boys!

Steve was cheering loudly. He looked over and noticed that Ricki was sitting down and had her hand on her stomach. It looked like she had spilled her drink all over her feet.

"Ricki, you ok?" he asked sitting down.

Ricki looked up at him with tears in her eyes.

"My water just broke" she whispered.

Steve just looked at her. He hadn't heard a word she said.

"What?" he asked her.

"My water just broke" she said louder this time.

"Oh…oh my god" Steve jumped up and ran down the bleachers, through the fence and into the dugout. He ran back out with Jax in his arms and Danny was right behind him with Benji.

Danny put Benji down and sprinted up the stands to Ricki. He gently helped her up and down the bleachers. Her contractions weren't very hard yet, but she still had to stop twice on the way to the truck.

Steve took the boys with him while Danny drove Ricki to the hospital.

Once they got there he looked at his beautiful wife. He couldn't believe it had been a little over five years since the last time they had been in this situation. Grace was a teenager now ("god help us all" he thought) and the twins were five. Time had flown by. Now here they were again. Only this time it was only one baby, and it was a girl.

Steve had taken care of calling everyone to let them know that they were at the hospital.

Ricki looked up Danny.

"Hey Jersey boy" she said to get his attention.

Danny grinned at her nickname for him. She had called him that ever since they had met.

"Yes, beautiful?" he answered.

"I love you."

"I love you too babe."

He leaned down and gently kissed her. She pulled away as another contraction gripped her. Danny held her hand and coached her through it, whispering words of encouragement and comfort.

6 intensive hours later Danny once again shed tears at the birth of his child. He again cut the cord and watched the nurses clean up the tiny little girl. When they finally handed her to him, more tears came to his eyes.

He took her over to Ricki and sat down beside her. He looked at down at the tiny bundle of pink in his arms. He sweetly kissed her forehead and handed her to Ricki.

Ricki cried as she held her daughter for the first time. She opened the blanket and counted her little fingers and toes. She took the little hat off and had to laugh at the head full of curly reddish brown hair. The boys had both been pretty bald, but when they did start getting hair it was as blond as could be. It had gotten darker, more like Danny's, but it was still blond.

The baby girl in her arms opened her eyes and looked up at Ricki. Her eyes were dark blue, like most babies. She wondered if she would have Danny's baby blue eyes like her brother's, or if hers would be darker, like her mom's.

The nurse brought Ricki out of her ponderings by telling her that they needed to get the baby to the nursery and Ricki to her room.

When Ricki was settled into her room, Danny brought the boys and Grace in to see their newest sibling.

Grace had tears in her eyes as she held her new little sister. The boys thought she was wrinkly but pretty.

Steve had tears in his eyes as he held his niece.

"She's beautiful, just like her mother" he said quietly, trying to hold back the tears.

"What's her name?" Grace asked.

Danny took the baby from Steve and sat down so that everyone could see her.

"This is Kaitlyn Malia Williams" he said proudly.

"That's beautiful" Steve said huskily.

Danny looked at Ricki with love in his eyes.

"Ricki picked it out" he said.

After a few more minutes Steve told the kids it was time to go. The nurse was there to get Kaitlyn and take her to the nursery for the night. Steve was taking the boys for the night and Grace was going back to her home.

Once everyone left, Ricki scooted over on the bed so that Danny could stretch out beside her.

Danny pulled his wife close and kissed her sweetly and earnestly.

When Ricki finally pulled away in need of air she looked at him curiously.

"What was that for?"

"Because I love you" he told her quietly. "I have a present for you."

Danny pulled out a small gift bag from the bag he had brought for Ricki. He handed it to her.

Ricki pulled out a small card and read it.

"To the mother of my children and the most amazing and beautiful wife in the world.

I love you.

Love, Danny"

She looked in the bag and pulled out a small black velvet box. It reminded her of the one Danny had proposed with.

She opened it and gasped in delight.

Nestled inside was a delicate white gold chain with a diamond pendant hanging from it.

"Oh Danny, it's beautiful" she said softly.

"I wanted to give you something that was as beautiful as you, but I couldn't find anything, so I decided on this."

She looked at her husband lovingly.

She leaned up and kissed him passionately. Her heart was so full. She had everything she had ever wanted. She had a wonderful husband that loved her unconditionally, and beautiful children. She knew her life was everything she had ever wanted. Danny had healed her broken heart. He was her knight in shining armor, her hero. She looked at Danny and saw nothing but love in his eyes.

She sighed as she kissed him again and snuggled down into his chest. Right now everything seemed perfect. She knew there would be hard times, they had already had some since the twins were born, but they got through them.

There was nothing they couldn't handle as long as they had each other and love.

Fin

**_**Well, that's it folks! Thanks so much for reading! I appreciate all of your reviews, adds, ect. Love to you all! ~Rachael (Saphire Dancer) :)**_**


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